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Am I going to turn this into a whole little lecture series? Yeah, I have no idea.
ANYWAY, sneaking in details!
Sometimes I have these little headcanons that I don't think warrant an entire fic. They're still useful, though, because I can use them to set scenes, or to justify actions that characters take, or just to expand the world in general.
Example from Metamour or Less (AO3 link):
It fits with Marinette's characterization of being ultra-cautious over protecting her secret identity, and sets the scene nicely for a discussion of same. It's also something I thought to myself, "I'll bet this is something Marinette does."
Merrythought (AO3 link) might be the exception there:
But then, I was only ever planning to use that headcanon as an explanation for what happens after, which I always thought of as the real hook. Merrythought is only its own fic because I wanted it to act as a prompt for other writers—because I thought the idea had a lot of fun potential, and couldn't imagine having the time to write every scenario myself, even if I could pick just one.
There's more in other fics, I'm sure, but I'm not in the mood to go digging at the moment. The point of this is: If you have a justification for why a character would do a certain thing, or act a certain way, or notice or not notice something, it is not only okay to include it, it can add something to the story you're building as a whole. You can come up with them as you construct scenes, or you can think of them independently and slip them in when you find (or accidentally make) a place for them.
(Bonus example: I'm not sure where I'm going to slide it in yet, but I've got a headcanon where: A) Right after Rena Rouge appeared, Alya spent three weeks researching exactly how Peter Parker gets pictures of Spiderman, and B) Nino totally noticed she was doing this, but hasn't necessarily put two and two together yet. I know I'll have the perfect fic opportunity to use this someday, but I'm not entirely sure where yet. Until then, I Wait.)
ANYWAY, sneaking in details!
Sometimes I have these little headcanons that I don't think warrant an entire fic. They're still useful, though, because I can use them to set scenes, or to justify actions that characters take, or just to expand the world in general.
Example from Metamour or Less (AO3 link):
When they'd first begun doing regular patrols, Ladybug had wasted no time in finding a secluded rooftop corner near her house to detransform in. It was risky to be seen clambering across rooftops as Marinette, but it would be riskier to try and sneak back in through the house when her parents thought she was asleep—and riskier still to try to get back in by any entrance as Ladybug. As an extra precaution, whenever she could, she would vary the time between when she arrived in her dark corner as Ladybug and when she left as Marinette.
It fits with Marinette's characterization of being ultra-cautious over protecting her secret identity, and sets the scene nicely for a discussion of same. It's also something I thought to myself, "I'll bet this is something Marinette does."
Merrythought (AO3 link) might be the exception there:
[Ladybug] shook her head. "It's not quite that simple. See, in order for the miraculous cleansing to work, the Lucky Charm has to be used. Remember Animan?"
Cat Noir shuddered. "Only every other nightmare."
Ladybug smiled sympathetically and patted his shoulder. "Well, the only reason I went back in was because I hadn't used the Lucky Charm for anything. If I hadn't used it to open Animan's mouth, nothing would have gone back to normal after, even though we could have captured and cleansed the akuma that turned him into a supervillain without it. All the animals would still be on the loose, and that bus would still be destroyed, in addition to everything else."
But then, I was only ever planning to use that headcanon as an explanation for what happens after, which I always thought of as the real hook. Merrythought is only its own fic because I wanted it to act as a prompt for other writers—because I thought the idea had a lot of fun potential, and couldn't imagine having the time to write every scenario myself, even if I could pick just one.
There's more in other fics, I'm sure, but I'm not in the mood to go digging at the moment. The point of this is: If you have a justification for why a character would do a certain thing, or act a certain way, or notice or not notice something, it is not only okay to include it, it can add something to the story you're building as a whole. You can come up with them as you construct scenes, or you can think of them independently and slip them in when you find (or accidentally make) a place for them.
(Bonus example: I'm not sure where I'm going to slide it in yet, but I've got a headcanon where: A) Right after Rena Rouge appeared, Alya spent three weeks researching exactly how Peter Parker gets pictures of Spiderman, and B) Nino totally noticed she was doing this, but hasn't necessarily put two and two together yet. I know I'll have the perfect fic opportunity to use this someday, but I'm not entirely sure where yet. Until then, I Wait.)
