I am so excited to introduce you to @Outropeace this month. They are a fantastic writer with over 20 fics to their credit. Their fic Nothing Quite Hits You is one of the Larry fics with the most hits in 2023.
This is a regular installment of No Stunts Magazine, so if you’re excited about authors and peeking behind the curtain in their brains, I encourage you to look at the last few issues for profiles of BananaHeathen, ItsMotivatingCara, CuckooTrooke, _LilyBlue28, Green_Feelings, BoosBabyCakes, KingsOfEverything, Jacaranda_Bloom, and Sunflouwerhabit.
If you like this feature, want to chat, or give me suggestions for future profiles, please hit me up on Twitter. @Rosann_1986 (formally @FlyWishing).
Without further ado, I introduce you to Andy.
Handle: @outropeaces on Twitter and outropeace on Tumblr
Pronouns: they/them
Works: Lunar Waltz, let your damage, damage me, happier, prettier, from chaos, dark doom, honey, among others.
Rosann: Thanks so much for agreeing to be here! What do you like people to call you?
Andy: Andy
Rosann: First things first, how did you decide to get started writing fanfic for the 1D/Larry fandom? How long did you write before you published for the fandom?
Andy: A friend asked me to write something for her birthday, it was a rare pair fic but there were hints of larry sprinkled all over the place. I think the author’s note says that it was going to be my first and last fic because I honestly thought no one would care besides my small group of friends, but people began to tell me I should write the second part because they wanted to know if larry got together later, so I kept writing. I was at an odd spot in my life back then, and I truly believe that creating stories helped me as much as reading them did at some point.
And as for writing in general, I think I used to write little poems for my parents for every birthday since pretty much I learned how to write. I lost that for a very long time, but I’m glad I got it back, all thanks to the people who told me they liked what they read (this is why supporting new authors is so so important, a simple “thank you” can change many things).
Rosann: If you read my column, you’ll know I love an origin story. What a lovely way to come to writing! And I totally agree with you when it comes to author support–thanks for reminding us about that!
What’s your favorite fic that you’ve written and where did the idea come from? How long did it take you from first idea to publication?
Andy: I have two that I hold dear to my heart. The first one is ‘from chaos’. It was my first fantasy fic and I mixed both the Mexican and the Mayan underworld, I’m from Yucatán, so I grew up hearing stories of both. I got the prompt from the BLFF (aka Bottom Louis Fic Fest), the prompter wanted a fic where Louis traveled dimensions into his favorite book but instead of showing as an extra or the love interest, he woke up in the body of the villain. My goal for that fic was to showcase how often history is changed by the people who write it. Especially in colonized countries where until a few years ago they made us celebrate our colonization, even sing about how glorious it was, to say ‘thank you’ for our ‘betterment’. I wanted readers to learn with Louis the reality surrounding situations like that. I wanted them to trust the Ahkins, to make them believe they wanted to help until the revelation. It took me around five months writing it, but I remember to feel excited for it every time I opened my google doc.
The second one is “let your damage, damage me”. I felt this was the first fic where I let myself write things I was afraid to write before, to push a little my limits. This was the first fic I was genuinely proud of from beginning to end.
Rosann: That’s amazing! I love that. What’s your favorite trope (if any) to write?
Andy: Enemies to lovers, I’m a little fascinated with the “because instead of despite” that brings the trope alive. To get to know someone’s flaws and loving the person because of them does something for me.
Rosann: How do you handle writer’s block (if you experience it).
Andy: Music is very very important to me. I often search for new songs when I feel stuck, and so far it has never failed to make me feel inspired again. Another thing I do is tweet random and sometimes out of context polls about the fics. To me it’s very telling what should I choose to do when I get excited for the winner or when instead it makes me want to explain the context of the fic.
Rosann: Music is something that works for writers’ block for me, too. Do you read other things while you’re writing? Why or why not?
Andy: Not really. I get a little wrapped when I start to write, so I basically use every little free time I have left on either writing or coming up with new scenarios for the work I’m writing at that moment!
Rosann: That sort of focus has made you very prolific! A lot of times, the “real world” frowns on fanfic in general. Have you had this experience? Do your friends and family know what you write–and how do you deal with questions about it?
Andy: My mom knows I write here and there, but doesn’t know what exactly, she’s just happy I’m happy.
Roann: Nice. I love a mom who’s happiest if their kid is happy. If you write a serialized fic, do you plot/outline before you write or do you just fly by the seat of your pants?
Andy: I’ve only done that once, and I had half of the fic ready since before I posted the first chapter. But I like structure and I overthink a lot, so I always make my outlines with all my plot lines/random thoughts/dialogues and I even have a color code system for feelings so it’s easier for me to find them out.
Rosann: I envy someone organized with their plotlines! What are your thoughts on writing/consuming smutty smut for people not in that same community and (assuming) they haven’t been in those situations? i.e. Can non-queer authors write smut?
Andy: I’m a firm believer, when it’s about fics on ao3 (and thanks to its tagging system), that you can create your own fandom experience. It’s up to you what you read and who you read it from. Same goes for fanfic authors, you know what you write and the reasons why you write it. I personally don’t feel anyone should assume or question what experiences each author has had, much less their sexuality or gender.
Rosann: What are the hardest scenes/tropes for you to write?
Andy: Smut. I struggle a little with the logistics of it all. I’m more of a dialogues’ person than a descriptions one, so I’m often afraid of making it too repetitive, boring or giving them four arms.
Rosann: That would be a really different sort of fic! Lately there has been some discussion on stan Twitter about what authors of fanfic “must” do (for example, provide trigger warnings). What do you think a writer has responsibility for to their readers? Conversely, do you think readers have any responsibility to writers (for example, leaving kudos or comments)?
Andy: To me, proper tagging is a must. As I said before, you are free to write whatever you please, but to even find your own crowd, you need to properly tag your work, in all senses, warnings and all. Or else, nor the reader, or you will get to enjoy the experience, because by not adding proper warnings you could be subject to a crowd you perhaps didn’t want to reach. Besides, it’s a nice thing to do, I think most of us are aware fandoms are safe spaces for many and the least we can do is to keep it as safe as we can.
I think kudos and comments are not a responsibility, but they are definitely important. At the end of the day, all fan works are like plants, if you want to keep them alive you need to water them.
Rosann: As a fellow author, I wholeheartedly agree. It makes such a difference. Do you have favorite fics that have inspired you?
Andy: Oh god, I have soso many, but I have four that marked a before and an after, perhaps not in my writing style (because I wasn’t even planning on writing a thing back then) but made me discover new things I enjoyed reading.
the impossible now by stylinsoncity
Pinkies Never Lie by alltheselights
7up by cherrystreet
Rosann: Great recommendations. Do you do anything to promote your fics? Mood boards or something else?
Andy: I love love to make small trailers for my fics, it’s one of my favorite parts of the process. I don’t know if I’m actually good, but I definitely enjoy doing it a lot.
Rosann: That is so cool! [Rosann leaves to go search for Andy’s trailers]. Can you give other burgeoning writers some writing tips–for writing or publishing?
Andy:
- Write what you would like to read. It’s what has worked the most for me. All the fics I’ve written and the ones I have in my wip list are prompts I want/wanted to read. So write for your own pleasure and entertainment before writing for anyone else.
- Support other authors. No matter if you are friends or not, or if they’re new or old. Give the same treatment you would like to receive.
- If you are on Twitter, make writing threads, make polls about your fics, try to involve your friends, mutuals and followers in your writing process. Believe it or not, this helps a lot too with writer’s block because for one part support is always welcomed and for the other you get to see your fics in another perspective.
Rosann: Great advice. Thank you! Anything else you want to answer that I haven’t asked?
Andy: No! This was beyond lovely.
Rosann: Thank you so much for your amazing answers and taking the time for this interview!
If you haven’t followed them yet, please follow Andy @outropeaces on Twitter and outropeace on Tumblr.
