Welcome to the last iteration of the In the Spotlight blog series for 2021 where we feature interviews with site-wide award winners for the month along with sharing some highlights happening around the forums and upcoming news from the community coordinators. Have a safe beginning to 2022, folks!

December's Staffer of the Month is our fantastic deputy administrator and lead validator, @chillneke!

I N T E R V I E W
| I N E K E |

What are you currently reading (fic or otherwise)?
Okay so as for books I'm currently making my way through Good Omens, though it's fairly slow going because I'm abroad and am constantly doing other things. As for fics I'm currently following @RonsGirlFriday's The Pride Of Burrough House, @down-in-flames's and all the pieces fall, as well as making my way through a lot of Lucifer fanfics.

What are you currently writing?
Nothing I should be working on, lets be real. The past few months I've solely been writing rpg posts, though it is my intention to come back to my wip's (esp the jily office au and drastoria one), as soon as my muse allows me to. Because while the intention is there, or sometimes even the words, they just dont get written down in the doc no matter how much I want to.

What are you currently watching?
A lot  I've been watching House, because while I had seen episodes, they were random and not in order. I've also been rewatching Lucifer (I say, with the last two eps still being unwatched because I am not emotionally ready), rewatching Doctor Who, catching up on Grey's Anatomy (I'm legit seasons behind). I've started the Office (currently in s5 I think, might be s6), and there is probably a ton I'm forgetting as well.

Where do you hang out on the forums a lot right now?
Arctic adventure. While I still need to catch up on the gift-giving myself, I do love to see what everyone does for everyone else and just feel the love being spread all around!

The Story of the Month for December is by blood by @iceballet!

I N T E R V I E W   W I T H   T H E   A U T H O R
| B L A C K B A L L E T |

What was the inspiration for by blood?
The inspiration for by blood began with Ineke's Inspired by a Song Challenge, so the main inspiration was actually a song! It's called "Left Alone" feat. Chet Faker by Flume, and if you know anything about Alida, you know she wants to be left alone. I just went with that and wrote little snippets of things about her personality. I got her name from a coworker lol.

What three songs would you put on a soundtrack for this fic?
Soundtrack...#1 has to be "Left Alone", it's only fair. Also the instrumentation/arrangement/tension of that song is really yummy when you read certain scenes between Alida and Regulus  #2 would be "Nothing Else Matters" by Phoebe Bridgers which is actually a Metallica cover. I love thinking about a waltz to this song, it's just so dark and regal!! If anything, the words are just slightly too romantic....or are they?  #3 is Black Tables by Other Lives...I just can't explain the rushing that this piano/violin combo gives me!! So intense between the short verses. And it ends in a crashing way, which is

Regulus's childhood portrait is a brilliant device you've used a couple of times in this story so far. So many questions I want to ask but I don't know if they'd lead to spoilers. So is there anything fun you'd like to share about Regulus's portrait, whether it will continue to be important, the relationship between real/older Regulus and his portrait? Or just general thoughts/ headcanons about people living in the same house as portraits of their younger selves?
I LOVE this question! I really didn't think too much of Regulus' portrait when I first wrote it, but after that first scene, I couldn't get it out of my head. I think that Walburga and Regulus' relationship is really important to this. She probably couldn't bring herself to get rid of the last bit of innocence in their house. And I think Regulus probably just ignores him for the most part. It's that sort of false attempt at being kind. They won't let him go, and they won't let him come into the current world (ie. keeping him in the dark about Sirius, never talking to him if they can help it)(also adult Regulus is neither in one world or the other). But his curious mind is what draws Alida to him. She has yet to realize how this quality reflects in adult Regulus....wow I could go on forever.

What has been your favorite thing to write in this story so far, whether it's a scene, a character, a piece of dialogue, etc, and why?
My favorite character to write has been Narcissa! She comes to me surprisingly easily. I think I have a pretty good handle on my view of her, though I do have some tough choices to make in the upcoming chapters...I have realized that I like her character a lot! I think that she and Regulus are similar in a lot of ways--namely that their older siblings are so radicalized and they are scared of being so.

Our final Member of the Month for 2021 is the great @BookDinosaur!

I N T E R V I E W
| B O O K D I N O S A U R |

What are you currently reading (fic or otherwise)?
Semester has ended here so I am fully exercising my right to be reading too many things at once. Fic-wise I'm going through a Finn/Poe revival for reasons totally unknown to me and heartily rec +Referent by 743ish (M) which does make me cry. I've also been introduced to @justawillowtree's +tiny kisses drabbles by the arctic event and am absolutely loving them, they're so tiny and so kisses! 12/10!

Book-wise I'm reading The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid (not totally vibing with it tbh, but it does feel very rich and is trying to express its own ideas, which is interesting enough to hold my attention), The Masked Crooner by Julianna Thorn (a lovely, grounded contemporary romance), and Polaris Rising by Jessie Mihalik (space opera ft a runaway princess and the sexy dangerous outlaw who helps her, yes please). And so as to not totally let down my supervisor I'm also oozing my way through Anton Kaes' book Shell Shock Cinema: Weimar Culture and the Wounds of War.

What are you currently writing?
+All the Waves Resounded and no use for noble souls (unpublished for now) are still taking up my prime brain real estate :'))) 

What are you currently watching?
I like to stitch in the evenings so am always after visually uninteresting documentaries where I won't miss anything if I only look up from my sewing now and then. To that end I've started watching the Al Jazeera series WWI Through Arab Eyes (M), which is backfiring on me because it uhh has parts in Arabic I need to read the subtitles of. Really should've anticipated that one. But it is interesting so there's that :'))

Where do you hang out on the forums a lot right now?
The arctic adventure subforum, I am loving all the gift-giving that's going on!

 The Winter Gift Giving event will be drawing to a close so make sure you get any last minute gifts in - there's already been so many gifts left this month! 

 As 2021 draws to a close, so does the 2021 reading challenge! Last chance to update everyone on what books you've read and what goals you've achieved! 

 Staff are starting to plan the annual site review and Golden Ink awards so check out this poll to vote on dates that work for you! 

 New Year, New Challenges - Ever fancied writing for a new fandom, or just need some inspiration from some amazing poetry pieces to get the muse going again? Check out the new challenges that have been posted in the challenge area! 

 The CC Writing challenges will also be coming back next year so keep your eyes peeled for that coming in the not so distant future! 

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credits:

courier: melanie
highlights and news: shaza
compilation: madi