slightlights   •   HP links

In late December 2001, I was introduced to Harry Potter fanfic via Rhysenn's archive, and thus to specific stories that were so appealing and well-written that I was hooked.

The following are a few links I personally like to keep track of (as in, not necessarily recs per se); the fics are generally pretty intense and/or slashy (I found myself to be a H/D rivals-shipper in a big way), although I like humor a whole lot too, so consider yourself warned. In most cases, I've linked to the author rather than the story so you'll generally have an idea of where they're at (including rating) first. Please read the rating/pairing notes, and heed them.

• Rhysenn's collection, containing Irresistible Poison, Windswept Feelings, Raincoat!Draco, and more (including some great LotR slash).
  If you want to read just one H/D fic to test the waters, I'd suggest Raincoat!Draco not only because it's short, finished, and PG-13, but because it has one of my absolute favorite 'touchstone' passages.
• Cassandra Claire's Draco series: Draco Dormiens, Draco Sinister, and Draco Veritas. Even if you don't have the easiest time with DD, I suggest continuing anyway; for me, at least, it's been most wonderfully worth it. This roller-coaster of a novel is a mystery in addition to everything else, and has inspired wonderful spin-offs (see C&R) besides. [Schnoogle] See also the Tolkien 'Very Secret Diary' sequence on her LiveJournal.
• Stacey's Tower with a View. Hot. Funny. Hot. Intense. Hot. She also has posted a same-universe Valentine's Day ficlet.
• the lady of shalott's A Weather of the... trio in particular. Her minimalism is unmatchable. [Diagon Alley]
• Pandora Souris-Cadavre's Umbrae Liberae. "His eyes are silver, and for a moment, it replaces green as her favourite colour." This is one of my favorite and seemingly least-known fics out there... with one of my favorite summaries period. It may require some puzzling, and there are a couple rough spots, but it's worth it. [Schnoogle]

Additional Fics: Some other fics I've found along the way, alphabetically by first name. Primarily H/D.

• Abaddon: for spoofy humor, see "How I Suppressed My Inner Slasher, by J.K. Rowling", but there's far more. [FFN]
• Aidan Lynch's Unthinkable Thoughts has hilarious boarding-school-boys interaction. [FFN]
• Ailei's The Devil Wants and so on. Dark for a reason (albeit in a few parts too much so for me), and I especially enjoy the H/D dynamic. [FFN]
• Aja's Love Under Will in particular. [Schnoogle]
• Antenora's The Losing Side. Very close to canon, very intense. [FFN]
• audrey thurston hirsch: A Brief Interval Before the Resumption of Play has a fascinating premise, carried out well, and it's finished to boot. See also Speak, Desire. [FFN]
• durendal: How Harry Potter Got His Groove Back and "What Colour is Your Wand?", among others. Hilarious.
• Frances Potter's Resolution in particular. [Schnoogle]
• Jedi Ginny's Adamo Redamo [Schnoogle]
• Kay Taylor's The Wolf with Red Roses [FFN]
• Kick Flaw : M (H/D, with Crabbe and Goyle seen through other eyes!), etc.
• Libertine
• Melissa D's We'll Always Have Paris. D/Hr, and I like it. [Schnoogle]
• Nancy's Someone to Know Me Too Well: humor, including fun dialogue, as well as intensity. [Schnoogle]
• Obake's All Torn Down [FFN]
• Plumeria has a wonderful array of fics, including the ficlets published collectively as "Light and Dark". [Astronomy Tower] At her own archive, she also has "Skin", among others, plus her nifty, realistic drawings and others' fics.
• New! rhoddlet's misc. short stories such as "Countries of the World" [FFN]
• sabershadowkat's Draco Malfoy and the Heart of Slytherin
• Sadie DragonFire's Unthinkable Bonds, a classic. [FFN]
• New! Serafitus and "The Tale of the Shining Prince" [FFN]
• Slytherlynx's "Self-Possessed" and Shatter [FFN] (note: this is down as of 5/2/02, but I'm leaving the link up in hopes it will return)
• Telanu's "Oh, Just This Once" and "Your Horoscope For Today" are post-student, and funny; her fics are generally the most interesting (and non-squicky) H/Snape I've seen, with great characterization, including a suitable S and a decidedly Gryffindor Harry. [PSA]
• Verity's "Switch" and "Beggars Can't Be Choosers" especially. She has an arresting style, spare and pertinent and entirely particular, which makes her imagery and characterization that much sharper.

Fiction Archives:

• Fiction Alley "All Shapes, Sizes and SHIPs", especially the "novel-length" sub-section Schnoogle
• Diagon Alley "for slightly older readers"
• Potter Slash Archive ...just what it says.

Pics:

• Bhanesidhe: remarkable style, semi-stylized but more realistic than most, with great attention to detail. [DeadJournal]
• Black Rose, especially D/H in "Candid Camera" and "The Kiss", but I've a sneaking fondness for "Slytherin Pride". Her Cho is fun, too. Stylized.
• Starling, who's drawn for the D* trilogy among others; stylized. (See also PoU). [Yahoo]
• Lisa Rourke, especially Draco #1 and the Weasleys; the most realistic style of the bunch. [Sugar Quill]
• Adi, a friend from C&R who draws for Resolution; stylized.

Forums/Groups:

• cassie_and_rhysenn: covers Cassie and Rhysenn's fics, of course; it's where I started, and I'm most active here.
• Fiction Alley Park: I follow the S.S. Guns & Handcuffs (Harry/Draco) threads in particular and post when I can; the G&H is noted for the many, many fine ficlets posted there.
• Draco_101: features Frances' and Aja's fics; neat Q&A, so I lurk there when I can.
• Seven of Quills: Plu's home among others', thus worth subscribing for her announcements alone.
• ParadigmOfUncertainty: it's convenient to become a member in order to be able to see some of the artwork and other files (notably DV-homework)... not to mention different D* cookies than what C&R gets.
• PoU-art: see above; many talented artists here, and their work's related to PoU (and thus Draco* series).

My writing:

• Fiction:
  • New! "Remember" is now complete, and up on the TDA section of FA. It's a two-part H/D fic, R for adult themes and implied slashy sex. (Two recommendations: if you've already read the first half, reread it before taking on the second; and if you read the version of the second half with ellipses everywhere, try the version that's currently up that has proper dashes (there'd been a problem while coding).) Thoughtful, positive and/or constructive feedback is very much appreciated.
  • Two lengthier fics are currently on the way, if somewhat stalled by recent illness, as is a more front-burnered, mid-sized spoofy collab called "Magic Trick".
• Non-fiction:
  • New! My LiveJournal; and
  • Irresistible Speculations: Draco's Wide World o' Hurt, written in response to Rhysenn's IP11; in IP12, she delighted me by making it an appendix.

Not to mention, unrepentant...
(button thanks to Magical Intrigue)