Age of Consent
Awake in the Infinite Cold
cosmogirl7481
Dusty
Edward Wallbanger
Lolashoes
Quiet Storm
Son of a Preacher Man
tara sue me
- Blinkie by beegurl13 -
- Tribute by StillDreaming85 -
I first heard of A Different Forest when someone shared their “Fic
Dive” in one of the groups on Facebook. I didn’t have a clue what a Fic Dive
was, but it sounded interesting, so I quickly went off to investigate. Turns
out a Fic Dive is what they call their fanfiction recommendations. The admin,
Tarbecca, goes hunting for “treasure” and shares her finds with the site. She
posts anything from new stories to new authors and old fandom favorites. It’s a
really great way to find new reads. So, if you haven’t checked out the site
before and would like some suggestions on what to read next, I definitely
recommend checking out the Fic Dive.
Some fanfic authors do post stories on ADF, but you don’t have to
post your story there to have it rec’d. They also do author interviews. I was
lucky enough to be asked to do one a few years ago. It’s a great way to
interact with your readers and also a good way to get to know your favorite
authors. You will more than likely find out something about them you didn’t
know, as well as their inspiration behind your favorite stories.
ADF has a ton of community-driven posts, as well. They do things
like the “What the Fic” thread where they share story updates. It’s also
another great way to find recs. Not only that, but it’s a good way to discuss
updates with like-minded people.
They have a “Hot Guy Ahead” thread where you can, ahem, see hot
guys. I mean, c’mon. Who doesn’t like seeing hot guys after a really stressful
day? “The Daily Chew” thread is where you can talk about anything from what fic
you’re reading to how great your day is going or how shitty it’s been.
They have so many different threads I couldn’t possibly
name them all, but you can definitely find something to pique your interest,
whether you want to talk about books, art, or even the latest TV show. They
have it all. Honestly, if you don’t believe me, go see for yourself!
The point I’m trying to make is ADF isn’t just another fanfiction
rec site. Not that there would be anything wrong with that, but no, they are a
community. The site launched in 2009, and since then, they have grown into a
site that plays a huge part of our fandom. They bring people together daily,
and because of that, I want to say thank you. Thank you for taking time out of
your day to offer readers something different. Thank you for keeping this
fandom going.
Here’s the link. Go check it out! www.adifferentforest.net
- Blinkie by beegurl13 -
- Tribute by Angela Weber Cheney (aka AddictedToFic) -
I wish I could remember exactly when I first
read Age of Consent, because it was a game changer in my love for Twilight
fanfic. At the time, I wasn’t on fandom social media, which is funny to
think about now. Was there life before the fandom?! When I finally joined
Twitter and Facebook in 2012 and started interacting with other fans, I had no
problem answering one of the most popular questions asked in the fandom: “What
is your favorite story?” However, I always did have a problem articulating
why it’s my favorite. So when I was asked to write this tribute, I took the
time to really examine my feelings about Age of Consent and how
important it has been to me and to the fandom. I’m truly grateful for the
opportunity.
There are so many things that occur in fanfic
that we allow, support, and enjoy but are so not okay in real life. The
idea of a 26-year-old man having a relationship with an almost-17-year old-girl
is probably one of those things. OlderWard became a very popular genre in Twilight
fanfic, and I think Age of Consent can take some credit for that. It
was written in the early days of TwiFic, and at the time, before some of the
really taboo topics were written about, it may have been considered quite
risqué. I have recommended this story to countless people, and a few,
especially mothers of teenage girls, get squicked out by the topic and don’t
even want to read it. But the bottom line is that Age of Consent is a
story about true love, sexual discovery, and a beautiful relationship.
One of the things I love most about fic is the
fantasy aspect of it. How many times, in whatever stories you love, do you wish
you were Bella? What teenage girl wouldn’t just die to get the attention of a
sexy, older guy? I always had the hots for older guys when I was a
teenager! But I would never have been as bold as Bella, which makes me really
admire her. She is the instigator and aggressor in their relationship. Bella
is so wise beyond her years. She is smarter, more confident and competent than
the average 17-year-old girl. She’s up on current events and follows politics
and pop culture, but she knows her history and can quote poetry and Beatles lyrics
like someone far older. She stands up for herself, like I never did as a teen,
but is also vulnerable and sometimes insecure, like every girl that age.
I identify with her so much and wish I’d been more like that.
Edward’s love and respect for Bella, despite
that he wants her desperately, is what I love most about him. He wants to take
care of her and make all of her firsts special, while she wants to go full
steam ahead. He admires how mature, fashionable, and cultured she is while
making sure she doesn’t miss important milestones every teenager should
experience (Hello! 26-year-old man at prom!).Though he’s had years of sexual
experience, he’d never really been in a serious relationship. Bella is his
first and only love. Their love stands the test of time. When the story is
complete, he is almost 40 years old and still as enamored with his Bella as he
ever was.
The majority of the story takes place during
their first summer together, and despite their age difference, they’re just a
boy and a girl who fall in love. While they’re nearly ten years apart in
age, I feel like Edward and Bella grew up together. littlesecret84 perfectly
captures the magic of summertime: going to parties, kissing in the car, and
sneaking off to spend as much time together as possible. I can so clearly
imagine them on a warm summer night, listening to music, holding hands, and
acting like any young couple would as they discover first love.
I love littlesecret84’s writing style! Age
of Consent alternates between Bella and Edward’s points of view, and both
make you feel like you’re really in their heads. The writing is so honest,
genuine, and almost poetic. In most stories that alternate POV, I often like
EPOV best, but in Age of Consent, I found BPOV so relatable. I
often felt like I was reading her diary. I always try to be present in
life’s special moments while trying to store the memory at the same time,
knowing I’ll want to look back and remember the feeling. “I know
that when I look back at my life someday, I will remember the stars, his breath
on my neck and shoulder, and the pain in the fingers of my right hand as I
clutch my iPhone tightly. Terrified, but blissful.” This perfectly
exemplifies why I love the way this story is written. It’s so natural and
authentic and how I’d want to write if I had a fraction of littlesecret84’s
talent for storytelling.
As I mentioned, I read Age of Consent
before being on social media, and back then, the way I’d find new stories to
read would be in author’s notes recommending other fics. I can’t remember
how I found it, though I certainly wish I could to thank that writer for
leading me to a story that I’ve read about 100 times (no exaggeration!). At the
time, I only knew about fanfiction.net, and I thought it was a short story with
12 chapters and about 30,000 words. At the beginning of chapter 12,
littlesecret84 indicated she was pulling the rest of the story and the complete
version could be found on ADifferentForest.net. I had no idea what ADF
was. So I searched, created an account,
and read the rest of the story there. I never got too involved on ADF, but I
definitely found stories there I’d never have known about otherwise. I have to
believe Age of Consent brought a lot of people to ADF that may never
have found it. It was one of the first stories to post only there in its
entirety and the fact littlesecret84 chose ADF as the place to post such a
popular story speaks to its importance. That may be Age of Consent’s
most significant impact on the fandom. For me, though, it’s the
story I’ll still be re-reading for the next “thirteen, twenty-six,
thirty-nine years,” until I’m in a nursing home and insisting the other old
ladies read this pervy romance I fell in love with so long ago.
- Blinkie by beegurl13 -
- Tribute by Sally Hopkinson (aka Alice's White Rabbit) -
Be aware there may be spoilers ahead. If you
haven’t read this fic, which has been around since 2009, I apologize in
advance. It is based on several stories/movies: Twilight, How to Be,
Flowers for Algernon/Charly, and a very small piece of August Rush.
Personally, I hadn’t read Flowers for Algernon nor seen the movie based
on the book, Charly, so I went into reading it blindly. I had several
people recommend this story, and I just kept putting it off—so many things to
read! I finally caved in 2015. I knew it was angsty, and I love angst. I swore
it would be a fic I probably wouldn’t re-read, but in preparing to write this
tribute, I did the unthinkable—according to several friends—and I devoured it
once again. To say it had less of an impact would be a lie. Even though I knew
what would transpire, I still bawled my eyes out. Even though this wasn’t my
first angst fic, it is the fic I measure all other angst fics against. If
someone wants a recommendation for a story that will tear your heart out, this
is my go-to fic.
I had my own theories as I was reading it for
the first time, but I was so wrong! And it’s hard to talk about this fic
without talking about why those of us who love it feel the way we do. This
story is not for the faint of heart, those who want everything to be hearts and
flowers. This story reaches into your chest and forcibly rips out your heart
and then shreds it. But I wouldn’t have it any other way, because the way it is
done is with such poetically charged emotions.
The story starts out with Bella moving to
Seattle to begin a Master’s program in Psychology along with a job as a
research assistant to Dr. Jenks, who has received a large grant to conduct the
first human trials of an experimental new drug that was showing promising
results in increasing the mental capacity of animals. Edward was the 5000th applicant. When he arrived at Dr. Jenks’ office he hesitated “like
a shy toddler afraid to leave the safety of his mother’s legs.” Bella
recognizes him as the person she's been searching for since he saved her from
being creamed by a bus, leaving only his battered wallet behind. But he doesn’t
recognize her. “Her face had fled from his mind like dandelion fronds on the
wind.” Dr. Jenks was looking for someone with an IQ of 70 or below. Part of
Bella hoped Edward would qualify so he would have a chance at a normal life;
the other part of her “ached for the sad, lonely little boy living in a
grown man’s body.” As
Jasper would later describe Edward, “He was several keys short of a keyboard.”
The way quothme describes things is truly
poetic. When Bella meets Rosalie, Edward’s sister, for the first time, she
recognizes her from the picture in Edward’s wallet, but she has seen better
times. “Time had run a slowly devastating hand across the canvas of her
face, like a once-pristine ice sculpture warping oddly the longer it remained
on its platform.” When she notes how Edward’s employers had probably
not even noticed his absence during his treatment, she says, “To them, he
was no more than a single fallen apple in an orchard full of other, shinier
apples still growing ripe on a limb. They wouldn’t notice if he were trampled
underfoot and eaten by worms.”
As I’m writing this, there are so many things I
could say about this story—things that would describe how Bella and Edward
meet, become friends, etc.—but that would tell too much. This is a story that
needs to be “felt,” not just read. So, I scrapped what I had already written
and decided to write a short “thank you” letter to quothme instead.
Dear quothme,
Thank you for writing a story that makes me
smile and makes me snot-sob like no other story has in the eight years I have
been reading Twilight fanfiction. Thank you for using your words to
paint pictures for your readers. Things like “that mysterious music that was
tickling the edges of his brain like the flies in his apartment that he could
hear but could never seem to find.” Or “When Edward started
playing, it was no hurricane of sound. It was a fresh breeze rippling through a
hanging garden of clean, sun-soaked laundry.” And “Edward warmed
up by carefully caressing every key, gathering them together like baby chicks
so that none of them would feel left out. He showered them all with finger
kisses and coaxed out their absolute best.”
Thank you for writing a story that sticks to
your ribs like oatmeal on a cold morning; it stays with you long after you are
done. Thank you for making me feel things I may not have wanted to feel. Thank
you for making me fall in love with this Musicward, who was not perfect but was
oh-so loveable, and his Miss Bella. Thank you for showing us that enhanced
intelligence or “being smart” isn’t everything, that some gifts can be subtle
in the beginning but can explode in a rainbow of music. Thank you for sticking
to your storyline even though many readers wouldn’t read such a [SPOILER]
tragic love story.
I think this was the first story I read that
affected me so intensely that I couldn’t stop thinking about it days after I
had finished reading. And it is definitely the only story that I just have to
think about the last few lines and tear up immediately years later. Throughout
the whole story, the main theme for Edward is “Will Miss Bella hear the music?”
So, when you wrote these words—Each night, when Jasper clasps Edward’s
shoulder in a silent signal that it’s time to go, Edward lowers his hands,
raises his face to the stars peeking through the crack in the heavens, and asks
a single question. “Will Miss Bella hear this music?” Each night, Jasper
answers honestly, “I think she will, kid. I think she will.” And, somehow,
somewhere, she does.—the sobbing begins… again!
- Blinkie by beegurl13 -
- Tribute by marvar -
When I was asked to write a tribute piece about
cosmogirl, I realized she reaches beyond the Twilight fandom. We met her
through her first story, Retail Therapy, and loved her for close to
thirty other swoony stories such as Conversations Over Coffee, What
Speaks in Darkness, and Solstice. She's also published a few
one-shots for other fandoms and collaborated with other Twi authors. And
now she wields her wit on Twitter.
Many of us who started reading and writing Twilight
fanfiction in the good old days have migrated over to Twitter, which has moved
from a way to promote our stories to us clinging together sobbing over the
dumpster fire of our government. (But that's a whole other story. Don't get me
started). In the absence of new stories, we've all remained loyal readers of
her tweets. I mean, everyone looks for the pink “I ‘heart’ Cock” avi. We
all hope she'll tweet a link for a new chapter or someday (crosses fingers) an
original fiction. But until that happens, we'll just enjoy her running
commentary on basically everything and book recs. Because we all really just
want to read what she writes, even if it's only 140 characters.
But let's travel back to those aforementioned
days of primetime Twifanfiction. You know, when Edward was still carrying Bella
bridal style and we all wanted lemons in every chapter.
My love affair with cosmogirl began in 2009. We
"met" online. I reviewed her story (or she did first—I'm old and
don't remember exactly) on Twilighted. Yes, Twilighted. Remember those days? I
actually looked up our reviews to research how our fic-marriage began, and I
remembered why I stopped going on that site. (My eyes are still strained from
that red-and-black layout.) We supported each other at a time when a review was
new and rare. Soon we were editing each other's stories, and then we started
writing together. We spent a lot of long nights sexting smut scenes after we
would totally fuck up a Google doc.
It was glorious, just like Edward's cock.
Besides working with me on Love in My Box
and a few other fics, she's also collaborated with Sydney Alice and Jaime Arkin
on stories such as Between the Covers and Confessions After Dark,
because everyone who talks to her wants to work with her. She's fabulous on her
own, but she really brings out the best in her partner.
cosmo is also known for fabulous birthday presents
in the form of dirty fics. I would know, as a frequent recipient of such
gems. Hello, Edward in the Afternoon. I remember all of us waiting for
that fic to update.
She's given us interesting characters, laughs,
and, of course, filthy smut. She loves a strong heroine (usually Bella) and an
HEA. (Yes, even the time she killed Edward. No, cosmo, you will never live that
down.) She's even written Emmett and Jasper as gay cats, which along with Jingle
Bella, is my favorite. You just know that if cosmo is writing the story,
it'll be quality stuff. We all await the day when she'll publish the original
novel we know she has in her.
Besides being one of the fandom's favorite
authors, she's one of the best friends and cheerleaders around. She's my
bestest fic-wife ever. And someday, we will enjoy our taco cart whilst wearing
kaftans on a tropical beach (I can almost hear "Thank you for Being a
Friend" in the background).
- Blinkie by beegurl13 -
- Tribute by Karin Kempert Lawson (aka Lovelybrutal) -
It's sunny-warm for November, and I'm sitting on
my porch steps, making circles on the ground with the toe of one corduroy
low-top, while my two young kids pull grass and chase bugs in the yard.
I want to do it. You know I want to, I Twitter DM yellowglue on my Galaxy S, the
one where the keyboard slides out. I just don't want to mess anything up.
I'm flattered to be asked, but I've never been a beta for a regularly updating
story before, and this one promised to be big. Sex, drugs, innocence,
debauchery, teenage rebellion, capital-A angst on a long timeline. True love,
truly fucked up. My own personal brand of heroin. But can I keep up? Am I ready
for this?
She reassures: You just 'get it' better than
anyone else I can think of.
Summoning up all my courage, I type out three
words that will literally change my life forever.
I. Am. In.
She replies: It's going to be a good thing.
Back in 2011, I don't think either of the
authors, yellowglue and TeamSmella23, writing together under the name
YellowBella, could have known just how good a thing Dusty was going to
be.
Looking back six years later, it's hard to pick
out what made Dusty so unforgettable. It worked on the same levels that
most Twific does but went deeper into them. It explored the ache of the teenage
years but started farther back, digging into issues of identity, friendship,
and the bewildering magic of growing up. Stephenie Meyer's inspiration led many
fic Edwards to desert Bella. Instead of once, Dusty does it to Bliss
again and again, and we're never sure if he'll come back, or when, or in what
state. We're never sure what he did while he was gone.
Canon Edwards are well-known for their brooding
self-loathing, but Dusty's manifests into more than the standard guilt
and self-denial we're used to. Blown pupils, paranoia, helpless fits of rage,
and an apparent indifference to the destruction of his own life are the bitter
fruits of addiction, a taste many of us know all too well. Plenty of fics bring
in memorable OCs, but Dusty's had a twist. She wasn't actually a person.
Cocaine was a character all her own, with lines between the lines. Blow was the
side bitch we all loved to hate, whispering persuasion too sickly-sweet to
ignore. Dusty's infidelities with actual girls paled in comparison to his
betrayals with white powder.
Fandom clichés can be fun, but the authors had
way more fun smashing them. Ally wouldn't go clothes shopping if you paid her,
Esme was definitely not the perfect mom, babies couldn't have been farther from
Rosalie's mind, and Renee was not only present, but deeply invested in her role
as a parent. Edward traded in blazing green eyes for sky-beautiful blue, and
Bella's chestnut waves were infamously strawberry blonde. These seemingly small
details gave them extra latitude to be themselves, allowing Dusty and Bliss to
become so much more than cookie-cutter characters to us, as well.
As captivating as their tear-jerking,
heart-rending, boundary-pushing love is, the real star of Dusty could
well be the friendships. Petey and Dusty were there for each other through
everything, from baseball practice, to car crashes, to blackout after blackout
after blackout. Whether smoking a joint in the '64 or taking care of the ones
who should have taken care of them, these two boys can say more to each other
in a look than they could with words. Bliss and Ally's relationship, similarly,
was better than the best of friends. We watched them share everything, from
banana popsicles to clothes and shoes, weekend-long sleepovers to dreams for
their future. They spent more time together than apart, complemented each
other's style, and knew all each other's secrets … mostly.
The seemingly simple contrast between Innocents
and Delinquents, between sugar-sweet Bliss and reckless bad-boy Dusty, reverses
as their story unfolds. Princess-baby is a liar too, and Trouble has the best
heart. The Sluts weren't all bad, and the families weren't all good. This theme
of duality, the double-sidedness in everything, was echoed in the readers'
responses to it. The fandom was firmly in one camp or another: you either loved
Dusty with wild devotion or you wouldn't touch it with a ten-foot pole. Many of
us would fervently anticipate each update but then send out a breathless,
flailing, all-caps string of tweets about being too scared to read it.
With details rich enough to revel in, Dusty's
depth came in unexpected places. From black hoodie cotton to brand new dresses,
from “Love is what we make it,” to “Lie. Lie. Lie.”, baseball cleats to snow
boots, bonfires at the beach to busted headlights, from “Do you want me to get
my mom for you?” to “Did you bring your fucking crayons?”, Dusty was more
absorbing, more engaging, more real, because even while it dealt with
big issues, it was the little details that added up to a world. Figure in the
gorgeous visuals and banners contributed by so many talented friends, and the
song lyrics that lit up each chapter like fireflies, and it's no wonder we
needed a support group. The ending, highly anticipated as it was, was still
tough to be ready for. We white-knuckled together through the fist-fight and held
our breaths through heaving sobs on the lawn. Their tears were our tears, their
broken hearts broke ours, and when “Hello” finally came, all of our lungs
tightened in fear, hope, and uncertainty. We were all on Team Love.
Try as I might, there's no way to sum up the
reasons why Dusty earned this Fandom Achievement Award. Swag and Sway
have meant far too much to far too many of us to reduce their impact to just a
few lines. Maybe it's because some of us had a Dusty. Maybe it's because some
of us were Dusty. Maybe consuming, co-dependent love just captures our
imagination like fireworks on a summer night. It has been a visceral,
transformative experience to be so closely connected to their story, and I can
never adequately express my gratitude to the authors for trusting me to beta
their incredible work and to all of you for reading it and sharing in this
amazing, emotional experience together. Fandoms change, relationships fall
apart, but Dusty remains, at home on FFN in its original form, here for
you when you need it, full of a love unashamed to be exactly what it is.
Fucked up, real, and beautiful.
Edward Wallbanger
- Blinkie by beegurl13 -
- Tribute by Nina Bocci (aka
Ninapolitan) –
Wallbanger will go down in the fandom history books as one of the funniest and irreverent tales. Whether you liked it, loved it, or never read it, I guarantee you’ve heard of it. Not many people can say that.
I’m almost certain I
have the very first message feathersmmmm sent me somewhere in my fandom email.
I can only imagine what it said. Probably something about Rob, because if you
know her at all, you know he was something she talked about. Often. Still
does.
While I don’t remember
specifics about that first email, or the thousands that came afterward, I
remember she somehow convinced me to not only read her first story, I Love
LA, but to also become lifelong besties with her.
Edward Wallbanger was different than I Love LA in many
ways. It wasn’t RPF but AU, which was really taking the fandom by storm. This
idea where regular old humans replace vampires and werewolves created some of
the most memorable fics. I think all of us remember them fondly, and once
we began really chatting about all of them, it opened up a whole new world (go
ahead and start singing; you know you want to). Also, I was along for the ride
as a pre-reader/beta-reader, which afforded me the option of reading it before
anyone else. What power that was! Then to see people’s reactions to it in real
time? Well, that was part of the fun.
Wallbanger was a story that mobilized a great deal of the
fandom that was still skeptically dipping their toes into the AU pond. I think
the comedy was what drew people in. People wanted to laugh, and Alice delivered
ten-fold.
These characters were
relatable in a way that made it special. Here are twenty-somethings, not
teenagers as was canon, and they’re were living, working, and banging their way
through San Francisco, not Forks. The fandom loved it, shared it, and
eventually bought it as a published work, which I believe was a true testament
to the power of the Banger. He was translated into different languages, because
above all things, people just wanted to find a funny, heartwarming story to
sink their teeth into (see what I did there?).
What was incredible
about Wallbanger was how quotable it was, and still is. I’ve read
countless reviews—both fic and based on the published version—that simply
illustrate just how easily the dialogue slips off the tongue. It embodied what
it meant to have cheeky best friends you bantered with, guy friends you shot
the shit with, and that one guy you’d drop everything for.
You can still probably
say to someone that read it, “He was still hard...” and they’ll blush and
then fangirl scream over the line. Who would have thought a little fic titled Wallbanger would have become the juggernaut that it did?
Here we are, how many
years later, and people are still talking about it. They’re reading it again
and sharing it with friends of all ages, because it’s something that translates
to almost any age group. I think as a newly 40-something, I can say I still
laugh at it the same way my 23-year-old nieces did when I gifted them a copy of
it.
Wallbanger will go down in the fandom history books as one of the funniest and irreverent tales. Whether you liked it, loved it, or never read it, I guarantee you’ve heard of it. Not many people can say that.
- Blinkie by beegurl13 -
- Tribute by Christina Hobbs -
When I was asked to write a little something on
LolaShoes and her contribution to fic and fandom, I thought, “Are you kidding?”
Lo is sort of my favorite topic—second only to Sephora and Harry Styles’
dimples. I can talk about her all day. But as I sat down and actually tried to
put my thoughts into words, I realized I didn’t even know where to start.
I first met Lo in 2009. She was organizing a
panel on fanworks (spreading the fandom love, even then) for San Diego Comic
Con and invited me to join. I basically loved her at first sight, but it wasn’t
until I got home and searched for her stories that I realized how insanely
talented she was.
My first Lolashoes fic was an EPOV one-shot that
takes place during Breaking Dawn. Where the book ends with “…pulled
us both into deeper water,” Lo (church hands!) filled in the dots. And
whew! What dots they were!
I remember sobbing my eyes out as I read Lo’s
version of their first time and what it meant for Edward to finally trust
himself. There was always something missing for me, and she eloquently filled
in the blanks. After finishing it, I immediately searched out her trilogy (Let
Your Light Shine/A Life Extraordinary/This Hungry World) and
devoured it in a matter of days. I emerged bleary eyed, tearstained, and
blushing, realizing that, while I adored the original books, Lo gave Edward
something I wasn’t sure we found on the original page: pure, unadulterated
happiness.
Lo gave Edward his Bliss.
Lo gave the fandom Love Days, a term many
of us still use today.
Lo wrote one of my favorite moments in
any fic ever: a tiny line in My Yes, My No, where Bella replaces her
last name with Edward’s and literally brings him to his knees. I still
gush to her about this line.
I reread My Yes, My No recently and was
blown away all over again because she really is that good. Told in
alternating timelines, My Yes, My No tells two different versions of the
time after New Moon, one where Bella instantly forgives Edward and one
where she doesn’t. In the My No version, Edward tells her he couldn’t
truly leave her in the woods and hid in the branches overhead until she was
found. To this day, I still find myself shouting, “He’s in the tree!”
during that scene.
Not only did Lo write nearly a million words of
fic in a year—a pace that hasn’t slowed much, I assure you—she also beta’d,
preread, reviewed, and helped raise over $750,000 for children’s cancer
research during Fandom Gives Back. And even now, with twenty-three books under
her belt, Lo still holds the fandom belief that writing is a collaborative
effort, reading query letters and offering advice for fandom friends, and being
the greatest cheerleader anyone could hope for.
Lo isn’t just my coauthor; she’s also my best
friend. She hasn’t just written some of my favorite fics; she’s the author of
many of my favorite words. Period. She’s my person and the other half of
my brain, and I’ll forever be grateful to the fandom for bringing us together.
- Blinkie by beegurl13 -
- Tribute by la_geologia (aka Belle Clementine) -
When I was first asked to write this tribute for
the Fandom Achievement Award, I kind of freaked out. I'm not very good with
words, and nothing I could think of seemed quite enough to pay tribute to the
brilliance that is Quiet Storm by SexyLexiCullen. I'm sure I've read
well over a thousand fics, and Quiet Storm sits at the top of that list.
The characters, the storyline, the writing, and the place it holds in the heart
of this fandom... It's one of the special ones—one of the ones I feel so lucky
to have read and breathed and loved and cried with and laughed with over the
last eight or so years since it was published. Though there are definitely
plenty of other mafia stories out there, there is nothing quite like Quiet
Storm and its sequels, Weather the Storm and Riders on the Storm.
Lexi masterfully takes us on one of the wildest rides this fandom has ever
seen. It's rare to find a story that is as funny as it is violent, as
irreverent as it is romantic, but Quiet Storm is truly the full package.
It's got everything: humor, action, angst, friendship, romance, crazy hot
lemons, and, maybe most importantly of all, extremely well-developed
characters. Granted, the Skip can be out of his mind intense and his beloved
Bebella is a little loony, but gosh dang it, we love them for it all the more.
And truly, this is where Lexi's talent really shines—her ability to write these
characters and create this world in such a way that it just seems so real.
Her writing style is completely unique; Quiet Storm was like nothing
else I had ever read before, and I was hooked from chapter one just based on
that alone. I remember starting the story and thinking, "YES! This is how
people actually talk!" and it's through that spectacularly written
dialogue that she truly brings the characters and scenes to life. I can hear
their voices in my head, their inflections, their speech patterns... It's like
I know them; they feel so real to me sometimes. And yet, as lost as you are in
the story, Lexi's voice as an author comes through so clearly. She tells her
stories exactly the way she wants to tell them, and I couldn't respect her more
for it. While Quiet Storm has one of the strongest, smartest, funniest
Bellas ever written and Edward is swoony as hell and loves her so freaking
much, these characters are not perfect. Not even close.
He grinned at me, nodding his head. "No,
now I get it...Like father like daughter...You think I'm some common
thug--hustling and shit."
I laughed. "You're such an asshole..."
"Yeah, I'm a lot of things." He
brought his voice down low, and started to play with my hair again.
I smacked his hand away. "Stop touching
me--"
He yanked me back into his arms again.
"Never." He squeezed me so tight again.
"Get off--" I tried pushing him, which
just made him squeeze the tightest he could.
"You want to know who I am?" He asked.
I continued to squirm in his arms. "You're
hurting me." I whispered.
"I'm the deadliest thing Brooklyn has ever
seen. I have no remorse for the things I do." He whispered. "I'm the
youngest underboss there ever was, and I am part of the largest organized crime
family in New York--"
"I know that. Edward, I can't
breathe." I rasped out, still trying to get away. "I didn't mean--I
wasn't going to say who you are fucking--"
"Ahh..." He nodded. "You meant
who the person of interest is?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.
I swallowed, nodding my head. "You don't
have to tell who you're going to kill--just where you'll be..." I stopped
talking, realizing that I was probably the stupidest bitch to ever walk the
planet.
When I was first trying to figure out what to
write here, trying to sum up my feelings about how amazing Quiet Storm
is, I started asking myself all kinds of questions about what made the story so
special: why does it stand out, and where does it fit in within the TwiFic
universe? It definitely doesn't fit the model set by so many other fan
favorites; there's no hero and heroine, no big trauma in anyone's past, no
brooding, no self-loathing, no pining, no redemption. No, I think what's so
special and so much fun about Quiet Storm is that Lexi unapologetically
takes us on a very different kind of journey. At its core, the Storm
series, with all its drama and humor, aims to answer a pair of very familiar
questions: what if Edward isn't the hero? What if he's the bad guy? And with
that, one of our favorite, most ruthless Mobwards was born.
The chemistry between Edward and Bella is
instant and undeniably intense, but that love and passion can be all-consuming
and explosive—violent, even—and in a mess of insecurities, awkwardness, and
constant power struggles, sometimes it's like they love each other beyond all
sanity, and that can, at times, be gut-wrenching to read. They would die for
each other; they would kill for each other. And they do.
"...he jiggled the handle, and I knew this
was it. I couldn't falter in my movements. I couldn't hesitate or freeze
because once I did, he'd kill me.
Time stood still as the door slowly opened and I
raised my weapon."
But still, through all the turmoil and violence,
every time Edward squeezes the shit out of his Bebella, his moosh-monster,
every time he bites her nose, I fall a little bit more in love with him, our
Mr. FuckHot PussyLips. We laughed with these characters, we cried with them,
and we rooted for their successes and giggled at their silliness. I feel like
we fell in love right along with them. From every time Edward tells Bella he
loves her…
"I think I loved you from Bebella."
…to Bella being so stinking cute and crazy
during her pregnancy:
"The look in his eyes was so intense, it
made a shiver run down my spine. He was looking at me, how I look at mozzarella
cheese, and that turned me on something fierce."
There are just sweeter, more special moments in
this fic than I can count, and I'm so eternally grateful for every single one
of them. Undoubtedly one of the most well-known works within the fandom, Quiet
Storm has been so deeply treasured by the TwiFic community, and me
personally, since it was first published, and even after all these years, it's
still just as beloved as it ever was. Its audience continues to grow, and
that's saying a lot considering that it hasn't even been on fanfiction.net in
its entirety since before it completed several years ago. But people are still
rec'ing it, people are still reading it, and they're falling in love with Skip
and Bebella just like we did way back in the day. You can't mention Mobward on
Facebook without a million people immediately flailing over the brilliance that
is the Storm series and deservedly so! It's a classic, but also with
every re-read, it’s just as fresh and funny and exciting as it was the first
time you read it. I've gone back to this story more times than I can count, and
yet, every time I re-read it, I find myself completely on the edge of my seat
or snorting over something hilarious. Even though I should know exactly what's
coming next, I find myself shaking my head and thinking, "I can't believe
I didn't remember that part!" Although, if you're familiar with the
series, you know just how wonderfully long it is! That baby is a freaking
beast, and for me, that's a huge part of what's so much fun about it. There's
so much going on that, every time I revisit it, it feels completely fresh and I
find something new to love and enjoy. Not only does Quiet Storm hold up
after all this time, but as I change and grow, with every re-read, I seem to
appreciate it more and more.
I was lucky enough to meet Lexi in Philadelphia
at the TwiFic Meetup in 2015, and other than me fangirling all over her like a
crazy person, I felt so lucky to talk to her and see what an absolute
sweetheart she is. I was also able to recognize where so much of her characters
and the world she wrote came from. Yes, she's a true New Yorker, but more than
that, she has Bella's big heart and her silly, quirky sense of humor; she
embodies Edward's curious, mischievous nature. That experience made me
appreciate not only her writing, but everything about the Storm series
so much more, and I will be forever grateful to Lexi for sharing her incredible
talent with us and letting us get to know these familiar characters in a
completely new way.
Quiet Storm, and TwiFic in general, came into my life at a point when I
really needed a friend, and as much as I love my fandom friends—and I truly
do—it's the fic that will always be my first love. These stories have always
been there for me; my companions when I just need something, a distraction, an
escape, a reason to laugh, a really good cry... Quiet Storm is one of
those stories for me that truly feels like one of my best friends, one of those
constant, ride-or-die friends who will always be there no matter what. Thank
you, Lexi, from the bottom of my heart, for sharing this incredible work with
us. I couldn't be more grateful. Quiet Storm is a true original, and
let's face it; it’s the ultimate Mobward. If you haven't read it yet, I
strongly urge you to give it a try. You're going to love it "more than
there are stars in the sky."
- Blinkie by beegurl13 -
- Tribute by beegurl13 -
Like many people in the fandom, I'm an Edward-and-Bella
kinda girl. I only read stories where they're in love and together. I
avoid stories with other pairings at all costs, because I'm firmly and happily
aboard the good ship E&B. Only one story has ever tempted me to abandon
that ship. It's been eight years since
the story was marked complete, and yet, the vast majority of the fandom knows
it, loves it, and rereads it on a regular basis. Maybe LaViePastiche
didn't know what she was creating when she wrote it. Or maybe she did. Either
way, Son of a Preacher Man is one of the greatest fanfics in the Twilight
fandom.
The story is told from three perspectives:
Jasper Hale, Bella Swan, and Edward Cullen. Telling a story from so many points
of view can sometimes be a tricky minefield for many authors, but that's not the
case for LaViePastiche. Where many authors cause a story to feel redundant
because the same scenes are told in multiple views, LaViePastiche is able to
skim over details, adding important thoughts and insights on key things, while
advancing the storyline with ease. She actually leaves me wishing I could
read every chapter from every point of view, a feat rarely achieved by other
authors.
Jasper Hale is the bad-boy son of a famous
televangelist minister intent on distancing himself from his “perfect” father
by drinking and sexing his way through life. Having that life uprooted
when his father moves the ministry from Texas to Arizona doesn't help matters.
While clearly a thorn in his father's side, Jasper spends as much time as he
can with as many different ladies as he can. For Jasper, it's all a game,
and he's always up for a challenge. The only constant woman in his life is
Pearl, his '65 Ford Mustang Fastback, with a dual overhead cam engine, a
restored black leather interior, and a silver cross hanging from the rearview
mirror. She's the only lady he has eyes for... until he meets Bella Swan, that
is.
A junior at St. Mary's Catholic School, Bella
Swan has spent the last few years harboring a pretty severe crush on the big
man on campus, Edward Cullen. Though he's never given her the time of day,
she can't help but fall for Edward's all-American good looks, smarts, and
broodiness. The first time she's ever tempted to glance at another boy is when
Jasper approaches her and her friends, flipping her world upside down with his
Southern drawl, sweet smiles, and sensual touches. She's blindsided by
him, and even though everyone warns her about him, she can't help but give him
the benefit of the doubt. She knows she intrigues him, and she enjoys his
attention, as well as the other things he does to her. She thinks she's smart
enough to avoid getting caught up in his games, but is she?
Edward Cullen is the senior soccer star at St.
Mary's who happens to be dating Jasper's younger sister, the bombshell Rosalie
Hale. Edward's coasting through his life, not noticing or caring about much
aside from getting out of high school and off to Julliard. Nothing means
anything to him until one afternoon when he hears Jasper mention Bella Swan, a
name he seems to remember hearing at school. It's then that his interest is
piqued, and he can't stop himself from finding out all he can about the girl
Jasper affectionately refers to as “Brown Eyes.” He's quick to befriend her,
hoping to save her from Jasper's wicked web, but is that the only reason he
wants her away from Jasper? Or could it be he's finally starting to care
about something? Or someone?
Son of a Preacher Man doesn't disappoint in any way. It's hot. It's
angsty. It's sweet. It's funny. It's sad. It's everything a good fanfiction
story should be. It's got raging teenage hormones, angry parents, mediocre
karaoke, and love triangles. There are hot cars, hotter temperatures, and the
hottest boys doing the hottest things in the hottest moments you can imagine.
It's got Catholic schoolgirl uniforms, desert bonfire parties, topless backseat
makeouts, and public betrayal on so many different levels. Maybe it's the fact
that it takes place in my backyard that makes me love it. Or maybe it's the
fact that LaViePastiche created a world where nothing is as it seems. It might
even be the fact that Jasper Hale is finally written as a complex,
misunderstood character that is desperately looking for one true thing in his
life. Regardless of why, Son of a
Preacher Man is a story that sticks with me, no matter how many other
stories I read. It's the one story that makes me think, “Maybe Bella shouldn't
end up with Edward, and that would be okay.” It's the story that makes me love
Edward all the more, because as good a character as Jasper is, Edward's even
better. It's a story that makes me happy Bella is a real girl, with real emotions,
and with real options. And every time that last chapter hits, as Van Morrison's
song “Brown Eyed Girl” is playing in the background and Jasper is smiling his
sweet Southern boy smile, I think to myself—yet again—maybe I'll be okay
hopping off that Edward and Bella ship. Maybe...
- Blinkie by beegurl13 -
- Tribute by Pamela Lorraine -
I slowly came into the fandom by pure accident.
As I was looking for a Team Edward shirt for the New Moon premiere, I
saw an ad for Twilight fanfiction at the bottom of an Amazon page.
Curious, I clicked on it and discovered a whole new world. Through this world,
not only did I discover many different genres of stories involving our beloved
Edward and Bella, but I began to meet many wonderful people and authors I’ve
grown to admire and become friends with. One of those authors kindly took me
under her wing and showed me the ropes, and when I mean the ropes, I mean she
gave me a full lesson in all things fanfiction, which included a list of all
the classics that I must read. On this list contained three short-titled
stories that completely stood out to me: The Submissive, The Dominant,
and The Training by tara sue me.
At first, I insisted this wasn't my cup of tea,
but I was simply told to read and to trust. I was only used to Edward being a
vampire. Reading Edward as human was new to me and beyond my vision of what I
knew him to be. What I discovered was that these stories were beautifully
well-written, highly researched, and told a story that was nothing like I had
ever read. Edward was sexy, strong, controlling, and human in ways I never
thought he could be. My eyes were open to so many possibilities of a human Edward,
and it made me crave reading him all the more. I gobbled up the stories and
wished, at the time, that there were more stories like this Edward. What I also
found was a huge tara sue me following within the fandom. Not only was
she beloved, but she was approachable, friendly, and extremely thankful for all
the attention she garnered and for the fans she had made. One thing tara truly
is is extremely grateful.
tara sue me opened a door in this fandom that
had never been opened before. The attention the trilogy brought to the fandom
was overwhelming and exciting. Her masterful storytelling captured the
attention of the fandom. EL James herself had been a fan of tara's trilogy, and
she went on to write her own fanfic Masters of the Universe, which she
subsequently published as 50 Shades of Grey. What people may or may not
realize is that tara herself is the trailblazer of this genre within the
fanfiction world.
tara published her first book, The Submissive,
on June 4, 2013 and subsequently published The Dominant and The
Submissive later in the year. The trilogy became an international
phenomenon! She became a New York Time best-selling author and, over the
years, has gone on to publish thirteen more successful books in the genre,
including The Exhibitionist, The Master, The Collar, The
Master Professor, The Flirtation, and, as of early 2018, Headmaster.
tara has much to be proud of and has accomplished so much in such a short
amount of time.
Today, you can find and meet tara at romance book signings throughout the US. I was honored to meet her twice in 2017. She was super sweet and extremely approachable. We were able to chat at great length. What I can share with y'all is that tara told me that she is writing a new series in a new genre. I'm extremely excited for her about it. She said she feels she was born to write, that the success she has had has made the opportunity possible! Her success continues to pave the way for many fanfic and future writers. She is always one to lend support and always remembers where it all began. tara sue me continues to be one to watch in the book world. Congratulations, tara! You deserve this fabulous achievement! You make the fandom proud. We wish you much continued success for many, many years to come!
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