opalmatrix | Dear Fandom 5K Author

Thank you very much for writing me a nice chunky something! Here are a lot of optional details about what I like and don't like in a story:

Preferences

I Don't Like:

Sickly-sweet, coy, cutesy romantic stuff (anything in the "tee-hee-hee, is he looking at me?" category is definitely out)
Extensive use of epithets, or epithets that don't match the character POV (no one should think of his or her long-time lover as "the green-eyed man," for example): these will throw me right out of a story
Characters acting out of character, especially if the purpose is to force them into a relationship (doubly bad if that relationship is romantic or sexual)
By-the-numbers, every-action-described sex (a/k/a Ikea Erotica). Note that actual sex is fine (I love me some sexy stories) — just don't like it when the descriptions turn into a set of exact stage directions.
Mpreg, rape, forced sex (including sex pollen and fuck-or-die), hatesex. Dubcon is OK, especially the sort when the reluctant partner really wants the other person but is just not quite feeling ready yet or doesn't think se wants it in this particular way but gets off on it anyway.
Humiliation or betrayal (without a damn good plot reason) of a character by a friend or lover
A/B/O and related kinks/tropes, incest (unless canon), scat/watersports/emetophilia, tentacles, non-human genitalia.

I Like:

Strong characterization (including character-appropriate dialog: no earthy, uneducated characters using $50 words)
Positive emotional payoffs that are well-earned
Passions that are strong without being mushy/fluffy
Moments of realization — satori
Friendships - although I am a romantic person, not every relationship must be romantic (I do like the trope of friends becoming lovers, however)
Wry and even dark humor in the course of a more serious story
And I like any of the following "cool bits":
- hurt-comfort
- family-of-choice, nakama, or True Companions
- whispered admissions of love or forgiveness
- someone's profile silhouetted against the light
- brushing long hair or riffling fingers through short hair
- romantic partners who are both competent
- warm and oversized bathrobes/dressing gowns or sweaters/jerseys
- licking honey or something similar off fingers
- caper-type operations: crazy elaborate plans that work out well in the end, especially if parts of them are silly/funny
- cynics with secretly soft hearts
- impulsive acts of valor (especially on behalf of the weak or an underdog)
- shopping or low-tension planning scenes, where people are working together to pick things out
- finding in a fight that one's ally feels like a protective wall
- old-fashioned sections of town with narrow streets and alleyways and odd shops
- someone gradually waking and smiling when they realize their beloved is there
- discovering that something significant to the plot was "hidden in plain sight"- the characters just didn't realize why and/or how it was important
- In-jokes among family members or close friends: silly things that make them laugh but that would be senseless to others
- snark, whether on the part of the narrator or from a character (this should not be *mean*, just apt and funny)
- places where arts or martial arts are studied or where master crafters are at work
- water sounds: rain, a brook, waves

I'm quite content with both straight and gay relationships. I do tend to ship the canon relationships, unless it's a character who has had no clear relationships shown in the story. I'm not comfortable with sexual relationships shown in children under the age of, say, 14 or so, and even then it's better in context (teens with other teens or in a societal setting where girls expect to marry by 16-18 anyway).