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twwpress · 2 years

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Weekly Press Briefing #9: August 21st - August 27th

Welcome back to the Weekly Press Briefing, where we bring you highlights from The West Wing fandom each week, including new fics, ongoing challenges, and more! This briefing covers all things posted from August 21 – August 27, 2022. Did we miss something? Let us know; you can find our contact info at the bottom of this briefing!

Challenges/Prompts:

The following is a roundup of open challenges/prompts. Do you have a challenge or event you’d like us to promote? Be sure to get in touch with us! Contact info is at the bottom of this briefing.

The fic drive for reproductive rights is looking for authors to participate in their auction event. Learn more here.

Trope Soup: A Josh/Donna Tropes Fest is open for prompt submissions and claims. Fics will be revealed on September 24. Learn more here.

Big Block of Cheese Day announced its August prompts. Submit to the AO3 collection here.

The August 20 prompts in 20 days are up on Tumblr.

Photos/Videos:

This week did, in fact, give us content other than Brad’s return to Instagram. Here’s what was posted from August 21 - 27.

Bradley Whitford posted dog photos: 1 | 2 | 3

Bradley Whitford posted videos of himself at a Los Angeles Dodgers game: 1 | 2 | 3

Kim Webster posted a photo with Bradley Whitford, Allison Janney, and Aaron Sorkin from the cast’s first appearance at the Emmys. (@jessbakescakes saved the photos from Kim’s story and posted them here.)

Allison Janney posted the trailer for her upcoming movie, Lou.

Richard Schiff posted a photo of himself and his wife eating corn in a corn field.

Marlee Matlin posted a photo of herself with her birthday cake, a photo of herself directing to announce her inclusion in the Directors’ Guild, and a video thanking people for their birthday wishes.

@schiff0rd: August 26

@thefinestmuffin: August 23

Edits/Artwork:

josh & his two white house dads by @sam_writes_fics [ARTWORK]

Miscellaneous:

Netflix released the trailer for Allison Janney’s new film Lou.

Creator Spotlight:

Welcome to our weekly creator spotlight. Each week, we will talk to a fandom creator and ask them questions about their work and their process. We’ll also give you the opportunity to ask questions of them, too! Want to be a featured creator? Find us via one of the methods listed at the end of the briefing!

This week’s creator is @claudiasjeans. You can find the spotlight on tumblr or on twitter.

Shout-Outs:

This is where shout-out members of our fandom (and the people who brought us the show, in one way or another). Got a birthday coming up? Did a friend start their first watch-through of the show? Let us know! Contact info is at the bottom of this briefing.

Happy birthday to Marlee Matlin!

Happy birthday to twitter user @sapphiccjcregg! You can find her fics here.

Happy birthday to twitter user @joshsdonna!

Twitter user @melfumeros is watching the show for the first time! Please do not spoil her. Welcome!

Editor’s Choice:

In honor of Marlee Matlin’s birthday, we’re rounding up some of our favorite fics that feature Joey Lucas or where we love the way she’s portrayed. Let us know if there are any you loved that we missed! i watched it begin again by hufflepuffhermione | Rated T | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | In Progress | Is your name really Donnatella?”

“Well, my mom is Italian,” she says with a sigh. “I go by Donna, though. Donna Moss.”

He tilts his head to the side, taking her in. “I think Donnatella suits you. I might call you that.”

“You’ll waste a lot of breath trying to call me by my full name.”

He thinks she’s going to like this girl. “I have breaths to waste."

A year after being forced to resign from his White House position, Josh is looking for his shot to get back into the world of politics. His plan: run a nearly impossible Congressional campaign for Joey Lucas in the California 46th. He expects a difficult campaign, but what he doesn't expect is how meeting Donna Moss is going to change his life.

always be my maybe by aeoleus | Rated T | Joey Lucas/Josh Lyman | Complete | It takes Josh all of ten minutes after the meeting concludes to feel bad about having stranded Joey (and Kenny, he guesses) in the rain. So, he grabs a sweatshirt from his stash of emergency clothes, a clean towel from the locker room, and sets off to find her.

No Matter What by All_That_Jazz_93 | Rated G | Joey Lucas, Kenny Thurman | In Progress | A story of friendship, self-discovery, loyalty, and finding purpose

Two-Step by azephirin | Rated E | C. J. Cregg/Josh Lyman, Josh Lyman/Donna Moss, Joey Lucas/Josh Lyman | Complete | I came to you with best intentions.

i fall apart (and i thought i was so smart) by RoseyPoseyPie | Rated M | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss, Abbey Bartlet/Jed Bartlet, Ainsley Hayes/Sam Seaborn | Complete | On the night of Mrs. Landingham's funeral and the President's M.S. announcement, the staff of the West Wing go for a drink at the Hawk and Dove. Thanks to the libations, Josh and Donna's relationship changes forever. Except, not really, because he can't remember what happened the next morning. Humiliated and heartbroken, Donna pretends nothing happened at all, but that plan is thoroughly derailed a month later when she's staring at a positive pregnancy test. With an election on the horizon, personal relationships in tangles, and dark pasts waiting to be revealed, it's going to get interesting for the West Wing.

Fics:

Last but not least, here are this week’s fics posted in the tag for The West Wing on Archive of Our Own. If you are so inclined, please be sure to leave the authors some love in the form of kudos or comments. Be mindful of posted warnings/tags for each story.

Josh/Donna

darling, so it goes (some things are meant to be) by mikaylawrites | Rated T | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | In Progress

let's become the lovers we need (who knew we'd be needing so much) by hanyolo | Rated M | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | In Progress

an everlasting vision of the ever-changing view by flowersinapril | Rated G | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

Healthcare Reform by hufflepuffhermione | Rated T | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | In Progress

The Smile On Your Face Lets Me Know That You Need Me by mlea7675 | Rated G | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

and i'll love you more than anybody can by JessBakesCakes | Rated T | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | In Progress

And the world spins madly on by Shinyrosa | Rated T | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | In Progress

what’s next by ImagineSisyphus | Not Rated | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

but to me you know you’ll always be my little girl by hanyolo | Rated G | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

when we went from friends to this by payback16 | Rated T | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | In Progress

overdramatic and true (the lover drabbles) by flowersinapril | Rated M | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

CJ/Toby

Shark Teeth and Butterfly Clips by fleurfemme | Rated G | C. J. Cregg/Toby Ziegler | Complete

we both get so blue by thefinestmuffins | Rated T | C. J. Cregg/Toby Ziegler | Complete

come in with the rain by JediAnnieScrambler | Rated E | C. J. Cregg/Toby Ziegler | Complete

Jed/Abbey

Miracle by imperfectirises | Rated M | Abbey Bartlet/Jed Bartlet | In Progress

Wait For Me by imperfectirises | Rated M | Abbey Bartlet/Jed Bartlet | In Progress

Sam/Josh

my friend, whom i loved by thefinestmuffins | Rated M | Josh Lyman/Sam Seaborn | Complete

my other half was you by sam_writes_fics | Rated T | Josh Lyman/Sam Seaborn | Complete

CJ/Andy

let them scatter in the wind by jazzjo | Rated G | C.J. Cregg/Andrea Wyatt | Complete

where is it written by jazzjo for rearviewmirror, crossingdelancey, claudiasjeancregg | Rated G | C.J. Cregg/Andrea Wyatt | Complete

Other Pairings/Gen Fic

is it chill that you’re in my head? by fleurfemme | Rated M | Amy Gardner/Donna Moss | Complete

i’ve told the truth (i didn’t come to fool you) by rearviewmirror | Rated G | Jed Bartlet/Toby Ziegler | Complete

Four Days by TheBreakfastGenie | Rated G | Josh Lyman & Toby Ziegler | Complete

The Language of Healing by silasfinch for justdreaming88 | Rated M | Ellie Bartlet/Original Female Character(s) | In Progress

Some Quarters in Chaos by thegoodthebadandthenerdy | Rated T | Danny Concannon/C.J. Cregg | Complete

death be not proud by jazzjo | Rated E | C.J. Cregg/Donna Moss | Complete

Wonder No More by Anonymous | Rated T | Sam Seaborn, C.J. Cregg, Toby Ziegler, Josh Lyman, Leo McGarry, Jed Bartlet, Charlie Young | Complete

it started off with a kiss… now it ended up like this by imawkwardlysocial | Rated G | Sam Seaborn/Original Female Character | In Progress

The Girl from Madison by Shinyrosa | Rated T | Donna Moss/Sam Seaborn | In Progress

Multiple Pairings

And the Pursuit of Happiness by welcometoyourworld | Rated T | Josh Lyman/Sam Seaborn, Ainsley Hayes/Donna Moss | Complete

Let's Get Together by mlea7675 | Rated G | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss, Ainsley Hayes/Sam Seaborn, Zoey Bartlet/Charlie Young, Abbey Bartlet/Jed Bartlet | Complete

mind these pillars of salt by eidola | Rated E | Josh Lyman/Sam Seaborn, Sam Seaborn/Lisa Sherborne | Complete

we don’t fit in well (‘cause we are just ourselves) by fiery_one_18 | Rated T | Ainsley Hayes/Sam Seaborn, Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

THE WEEKLY PRESS BRIEFING TEAM CAN BE REACHED VIA THE FOLLOWING METHODS:

Twitter: @TWWPress

Email: [email protected]

Life moves fast in fandom, so please let us know if we missed something, if you have an event you’d like us to promote, or if you have an item that you’d like included in the next briefing!

xx,

What’s next?

#the west wing #tww #tww fandom #tww fic #tww fanfic #tww fic recs #donna moss #abbey bartlet #josh lyman #ainsley hayes #sam seaborn #cj cregg #toby ziegler #joey lucas #josh x donna #sam x josh #cj x toby

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blurredcolour · 5 months

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Get to know me

Thanks for the tag @venus-haze!

Three ships: hangster, stelena (don’t @ me, LJ Smith got this one right), twillow

First ship: Sam Seaborn x Ainsley Hayes (do they have a ship name?! God I love their chemistry)

Last song:

Currently reading: any and all BoB fanfic I can get my hands on. I have been woefully neglecting the book by my bed but it’s The Lady Di Look Book

Currently watching: The Crown season 6 and my millionth rewatch of Band of Brothers (halfway through Carentan at the moment)

Currently consuming: water (last food I ate was pizza pops for lunch, like the adult I am 🤦‍♀️)

Currently craving: a lazy evening but I need to clean my house and have no more excuses

Current obsessions: HBO war, mandarin oranges, tea of all flavours, Japanese hot pot, getting over this horrid cough

Currently up to: plotting my next band of brothers fic! I’ve got like 4 jump off points that need to be fleshed out and written. Bee has a busy busy brain.

No pressure tags: @steph-speaks , @elvisabutler

#tag game #bee’s buzz #Spotify

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claudiasjeancregg · 4 years

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oh my GOD GUYS, i just found some amazing west wing fanfic- puck and zillah have written some AMAZING stories. they’re pretty old but i’m so happy that they’re still up- as far as i can tell, these two are legends in the fandom (and i TOTALLY see why!)

the link is here if anyone wants to read them, i can’t recommend these enough! they have cj/toby, josh/donna, and sam/ainsley (so far, they may have written other ships that i haven’t read yet)

#fanfic rec #fanfic tag #the west wing #tww #tww fic #cj x toby #josh x donna #donna x josh #sam x ainsley #ainsley x sam #toby x cj #aleena rambles

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actuallylorelaigilmore · 7 years

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Rain On Me Your Sweetness

TWW one-shot, Sam x Ainsley, just a smidge post-series. While @actuallylukedanes‘s birthday is technically over now, this fic is a belated gift by request.

Summary: A new administration...a new chance at something more. Pure fluff with sequel potential. “Why did he suddenly feel like he was pulled right back to being that kid in the Mess who couldn’t even carry food up stairs without dropping it, because he thought his coworker was pretty?”

Cross-posted on AO3; additional notes can be found there.

“Sam!”

The folders Ainsley had been carrying went flying out of her hands when she ran into him, both figuratively and literally, in the bustling White House hallway.

He didn’t drop anything he was carrying, but his gaping mouth made it obvious that he was just as surprised to see her.

Transition was such chaos, it was no wonder it hadn’t happened yet, Ainsley thought. It turned out that coming into an administration once it was established and running relatively smoothly was vastly different from being a part of it from the ground up.

He should have expected this, Sam thought ruefully. He’d heard that she was going to be White House Counsel, but hadn’t needed to think about that too much, with all the positions that still needed staffing and the minutia of the transition that Josh had kept piling on his desk.

Every time he looked at his growing phone sheet, he remembered the jokes they’d crack in the Bartlet Administration about Josh not really having a job to do. He kind of wanted to grab past-Sam by the shoulders and give him a good shake.

“Ainsley, hi,” he stammered after what felt like an eternity, trying not to look as uncomfortable as he felt. God, what had it been, four years? Why did he suddenly feel like he was pulled right back to being that kid in the Mess who couldn’t even carry food up stairs without dropping it, because he thought his coworker was pretty?

Shaking his head, Sam crouched down to help gather up her folders. “Sorry about this, I wasn’t even looking, I have a meeting with Carter and he--”

His hand bumped hers and he cut himself off, drawing back. “Doesn’t matter. Here you go.”

“It was my fault,” Ainsley argued, taking the files as they stood back up. “I know better than to read and walk. Or, well--I don’t, obviously.”

He was already angling himself for a retreat, and she wasn’t sure why.

“Well anyhow, I’m sorry for bumping into you.”

“It’s really alright,” she tries to tell him, but his phone buzzes and he makes an apologetic face.

“I have to go.”

“Nice to see you again,” she offers faintly, watching him walk away.

****

How was it that time had barely touched her, Sam wondered.

He was only half-listening as Lou argued with Carter, giving his mind more time to wander--it wasn’t as though Lou really needed his help when it came to posturing.

Instead, he was thinking of Ainsley, the way she’d been striding through the halls like she owned them, no longer the insurgent who was afraid to meet the Commander in Chief.

She seemed so much more confident--if no more coordinated, he thought with a smirk...but just as gorgeous.

Only Ainsley Hayes could crouch in the middle of a West Wing hallway, gathering her paperwork, and look completely radiant.

In the years since she’d left the Counsel’s office and he’d left the White house, he’d thought about her often. She was one of his few regrets: never making a move, being too worried about a scandal or even just looking like an idiot. He’d always had to wonder whether she would have said yes, if only he’d asked.

The last thing he needed now was to remember all of that, to relive it...to have it shoved in his face in the old halls where she glowed like new and he just felt tired.

After the meeting, he was grabbing lunch in the Mess when his attention was diverted from the new drought report by that light drawl.

"Hello again.”

“Hey.” He grinned at the size of her salad as she joined him. “Famished?”

“It’s lunchtime,” she answered, as though that answered that.

Ainsley studied him while she ate. It was strange to see how little Sam had changed, when the White House was full of it these days. He was still one of the most beautiful men she had ever seen, objectively speaking, who never acted like it. She still had the urge to pick a fight with him on every issue, just to watch his mind work.

“I’d heard you were taking the position as Deputy,” Ainsley told him as they finished eating. “How is it going so far?”

“Well, so far, it’s…madness,” he admitted with a chuckle. She noted with interest that the last few years had sharpened him...he’d lost that sweet, heart-on-his-sleeve look that had been so difficult to resist. He had the polish and steel he would need to be the new Josh, Ainsley thought, but had to give up parts of the old Sam to get there.

She hadn’t kept in touch after she left the Counsel’s office, and now she was left in the dark as to what exactly had happened to change him so much. She wondered if it was a bad breakup, or the congressional debacle she’d watched from afar. It couldn’t have been the White House itself, because here he was, back again.

“That sounds about right,” she replied.

“Yeah. There are perks, though.” His face brightened. “Want to see my office?”

“Even better,” she countered with a laugh. “Want to see mine? No bats at all so far.”

“Wish I could,” Sam told her as he set his napkin aside, “but I’ve got to be on the Hill by one. With the way President Santos likes to chart his own course, though, I’m sure I’ll be seeing it soon enough.”

With their new working relationship in the administration, Ainsley knew that he couldn’t avoid her entirely. But something compelled her to rush ahead before he could disappear for the second time.

“How about we meet for a drink later and catch up? I’d love to hear all about what I missed when I left. Say, tonight at nine?”

Somehow Sam was certain that socializing with her after hours was a bad idea, but now that he was Deputy COS, the last thing he needed was to antagonize the new White House Counsel before they’d even gotten their administration off the ground.

Blinking, he couldn’t find a way to politely refuse, so he didn’t. “Sure. Sounds good. The Gibson?”

Ainsley grinned, her smile still pure Southern sunshine. “Great. See you then, Sam.”

****

When he arrived at the bar, it took him a minute to find her, even though he knew she would have gotten there early. That was Ainsley for you, punctual to a fault, obsessed with her codes of honor and truth and star-spangled patriotism. But despite sitting across a table from her earlier that same day, he barely recognized her at The Gibson.

Her long hair was pinned back, framing her face, which had pinked up prettily to contrast her slick red lips. Suddenly Sam wasn’t sure this was a friendly drink after all. What was it she’d said when he agreed to meet? He tried to think back, unable to focus. Whatever it was, it hadn’t prepared him for the silver top that laced across her bare back and showed off creamy skin dipping down to a sweeping black skirt.

She was chatting with the bartender as he approached, her head tipped back in laughter, making the smooth line of her neck catch the muted light. He admired her ease with strangers, Democrat or Republican; he’d always been a little awkward with them.

“Sam,” she greeted him with delight, eyes sparkling as he approached. “You made it.”

“Of course I did.” He took a seat at the bar next to her. “It’s busy in the Oval, but we’re not quite at the working-past-eight stage of the chaos yet.”

“Well, I’m glad.”

The bartender nodded his way, eyes returning to Ainsley afterwards. Sam couldn’t blame him. “What’ll you have?”

“Tom Collins.”

By the time the bartender brought his drink, Ainsley had coaxed out the story of why he had left the Bartlet administration. It was easier than he would’ve expected to admit that the loss of an unwinnable campaign soured him on politics. It was harder to answer her understandable follow-up question.

“Then why did you come back?”

“Josh needed me. President Santos intrigues me. And I just...I missed it.”

He folded his napkin in half, then tucked it into his pocket--an old habit he stopped noticing years ago. "What about you? Why not stay at the...where were you again, the Coolidge Institute?”

“Hoover.”

“Right.” He smiled. “So, why did you come back?”

“Well, first there’s Josh’s winning personality,” Ainsley drawled, making him laugh.

“But seriously...” She thought about it. “I feel like I did more good working under President Bartlet than I have in the years since. Bipartisanship is where real change happens--where government can actually work for the people.”

He was nodding along, drawn in by her sincerity. There were many things Ainsley Hayes was not, but she always said only what she meant. That was one of his favorite things about her.

“I want to work for the people,” she finished simply. A firm nod punctuated her words. “So I’m here to help the President do that.”

He couldn’t help the slow smile that spread over his face. He was simply enchanted by her strange intensity, always had been. Dazzled.

Sam told her about a few of his strangest encounters after leaving the White House, and she returned the favor with tales of being accosted for her traitorous career choices whenever she went back to her hometown.

“This is fun. Why did we never do this during the Bartlet administration?” Ainsley asked him, sipping her second sparkling pink cocktail.

“Why do you think?”

“Well, it wouldn’t have been appropriate,” she began the list easily, as though she had it already prepared. “I was new, and wanted respect, not whispers about fraternization. We had nothing in common.

“And also?” She smiled at him. “You never asked me.”

He enjoyed the way her words went soft around the edges with just that hint of the South, he always had. Despite her years in Washington, that had yet to change, and it made him grin back at her in return.

“This time I didn’t have to,” he pointed out.

“Yeah, I’m all about seizing the day now,” Ainsley said with a laugh. “I just thought it would be nice to catch up.”

“Even though we still work together, and have nothing in common.”

“Well, it’s not like I’m a senior counselor,” she replied, growing serious again. “We have history in common. And after Leo...every day matters.”

“Yeah.” Sam blinked back the stinging in his eyes for a second.

“Anyhow, it was just an evening out,” Ainsley beamed at him and finished her drink. “Nothing to worry about here.”

****

Walking amiably next to each other on the way back to her place, they got caught up in a dissection of the latest Supreme Court decision, Roper v. Delaware.

“It’s clearly a civil rights violation. All you have to do is look at the prior case law, Madison v. Harwick for one.”

“Come on, Sam. You of all people can’t honestly be saying that the Constitution guarantees--”

“Well, clearly I am saying it or you wouldn’t be trying to argue against it!” Sam shook his head. Some things never changed. He was glad this one hadn’t. Ainsley was still his best opponent.

“This is me.” She stopped in front of an unobtrusive brownstone and smiled at him. “We’ll have to continue this during office hours. Maybe we could grab lunch tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I’d like that.”

“I’m really glad we’re going to be working together, Sam." Impulsively, Ainsley leaned in to kiss him on the cheek, before shooting him another smile. “Thanks for walking me home.”

“Goodnight,” he called out as she headed up the stairs, not sure what had just happened.

Dazed, Sam began the walk back toward his own apartment. His cheek tingled where she’d kissed it. Catching a goofy smile on his own face, he thought back to their evening at the bar, swapping stories and avoiding shop talk.

Had he just gone on a date with Ainsley Hayes?

#tww #sam x ainsley #ainsley hayes #sam seaborn #tww fic #sam x ainsley fic #sam x ainsley fanfic #tww fanfic #fanfic #my fic #abw2017

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hotchkissroyale · 10 months

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Adorable, Yet Ill Adored - Chapter 8 "Just One Little Dance"

Adorable, Yet Ill Adored: F/M, Sam/Ainsley. An attempt to fill in the cracks of the saga of Ainsley Hayes and Sam Seaborn, a messy, blossoming story of love and lust behind the scenes.

An excerpt from Chapter 8: Just One Little Dance (out now)

Her body was almost pressed tight against his, now, the thick robe the only thing standing between him and her soft skin. The song continued in the background, but Ainsley had stopped dancing. Her grin had turned more mischievous than gleeful, her hands warm against Sam’s. The heat of her office was getting more and more pronounced, as jets of hot steam rushed through the pipes onto the rest of the White House. “Sam, could you get the door?” He gulped and looked behind him again. “In your office? Really?” She tittered. “Oh please, Sam, you’re the only one who’s come down here in months. Besides…” She grabbed the belt of her robe and dangled it in her hand. “I’m getting a little hot, and I want to slip into something a little more…comfortable.”

Thank you and enjoy.

#the west wing #west wing #sam/ainsley #sam x ainsley #sam seaborn #ainsley hayes #ao3 #smut #romance #fanfic

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hotchkissroyale · 10 months

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Adorable, Yet Ill Adored - Chapter 7

Adorable, Yet Ill Adored: F/M, Sam/Ainsley. An attempt to fill in the cracks of the saga of Ainsley Hayes and Sam Seaborn, a messy, blossoming story of love and lust behind the scenes.

An excerpt from Chapter 7: Dropping In (out now)

Sam was in the middle of nodding along with a smile before he remembered Toby was sitting there. His head froze. Ainsley’s laugh trailed off when she saw the look in Sam’s eyes, jolting her head to the side to look at Toby. Just as before, his eyes were bouncing slowly between the two of them, saying nothing as his lips parted just a hair. Ainsley retreated into her body as she slipped her mask of decorum back on, moving her glass to the table with just a little too much force and speed to be proper. “I beg your pardon, I have to use the restroom.” She hopped up from the chair and walked briskly to the other end of the bar and around the corner. Sam tried pointedly not to make eye contact with Toby as he nursed his drink, but found himself drawn, like many before him, to Toby’s cold iron glare. “Sam.” “Yeah?” “A little bit ago, when I asked if I was interrupting anything…” Sam was starting to get nervous, but held his gaze. “What about it?” “Was I interrupting something?”

Thank you and enjoy.

#west wing #the west wing #sam/ainsley #sam x ainsley #sam seaborn #ainsley hayes #ao3 #smut #romance #fanfic

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twwpress · 1 year

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Creator Spotlight #18: BimadaBomily

Welcome back to our TWW Creator Spotlight! For every spotlight, we’ll ask each featured creator the same ten questions as well as select questions submitted on twitter. This week, we’re chatting with @bimadabomily on twitter and on ao3. We are so excited to see these answers, so let's get right to it!

1) What are your top 5 desert island TWW fics?

I Want It All Or Nothing, No More In Between by scarmophogoghs. When I tell you this fic had me waiting impatiently for updates every Sunday and Wednesday like it was primetime TV. Hawaii fics are my wheelhouse so this one was just SO perfect and such a gift to the fandom. Every time I rewatch Transition I immediately scour the internet for Hawaii stuff to fill in the blanks and now that I have this one I know where I’ll turn! https://archiveofourown.org/works/38071159

Oversight by thefinestmuffins. I really enjoyed that one and I’m not really usually an AU/canon divergent person but I read this one and was SO into it and could not wait for the updates! https://archiveofourown.org/works/38170111

can’t call you a stranger (but I can’t call you) by joshatella (shuuuliet). Okay so I know I said I’m not usually a canon divergent person but KING CORN ELEVATOR FICS are exempt. Or any King Corn fix-it/divergance. I was so excited when I saw that this “trapped in an elevator” prompt was used for King Corn and if you’re on a desert island you need a King Corn fix-it. https://archiveofourown.org/works/37133149

something good and right and real by swancharmings. When I first read this one I said this IS exactly what happened on the walk or something, no questions asked. It is canon. https://archiveofourown.org/works/36250696

let’s give ‘em pumpkin to talk about by thotsandfeelings. Okay basically anything by thotsandfeelings but if I have to pick one to represent I pick this one! Halloween, Josh in baseball pants, chiefs of staff era. Yes. https://archiveofourown.org/works/27310273

2) Do you have a favorite character to write? Favorite ship(s) to write? Are there characters or ships you'd like to write more of?

My favorite ship to write for in The West Wing is Josh/Donna. I think Josh is my favorite character to write. He’s so messy and complicated, haha. I love to write Josh as a dad and their kids as well (original characters, which is something I never really clicked with writing until this fandom). Sometimes I start a fic thinking it’s J/D but ends up more being about Dad Josh or family feels.

I’d like to write, or include, more Sam/Ainsley. I always try to throw a little Sam/Ainsley in there because I think I could’ve totally shipped them and they had potential had she stayed. But I don’t have their voices down enough to do it so I just usually throw vague references in to allude to them being together.

3) Tell us about your creative process (setup/location? Night or day? Snacks/beverages? Computer/phone/notebook? Music or silence? Anything else you want to share is welcome!)

Whenever inspiration strikes! I’m a teacher, so I really get going during breaks when I have a lot of downtime. I’d say my usual fave writing time is the weekends- could be day or night. I usually write while sitting on my couch. I always write on my computer. Fun fact: when I first started writing fic I could NOT write it on the computer. I’d write it out on paper and then type it up. I guess that’s a sign of being “old” in the fandom world! Gradually, I transitioned to just being computer based lol. There have been many days when I get going on something and I just sit and write all day on a weekend or day off of work… the best! Sometimes if a line or scene hits me, I jot it down in the notes app on my phone before I forget it… the amount of times I’ve said “Oh I won’t forget that one!” and then try and fail to remember what my great idea was later. I can’t really listen to music (it distracts me) unless it’s related to what I’m writing somehow. Sometimes I do put on the show in the background to get the vibes and hear the voices.

I read and reread and reread my stuff over and over and add little things each time. I also like to post it as a draft on AO3 and read it through that way to see how it will look published to get the feel of it as a published fic.

Something fun I do for myself as a little wink to myself is I always try to work in one “Donnatella” mention in each TWW fic.

4) What writing advice do you have for others who may be reading this?

Write for yourself and then put it out there in case someone likes it. I think you just have to be true to yourself! If you really feel an idea, go for it. No matter how out there, how unconventional, how AU it might be. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but there’s someone out there who will love it and you will love it too!

Also, take your time with things. The more I reread my stuff and add to it the better it gets. Sometimes I just want to post but I know it’ll be better with a few more run throughs, so I have to be patient.

5) From where do you usually draw your inspiration? (Other forms of media, music, tropes, etc?)

usually come up with my ideas when I’m trying to get to sleep and my mind wanders or in the shower or something lol. A little moment or line or scene or idea will pop into my head and I run with it from there. So, I guess, my imagination? Or sometimes (a lot of the time?) it’s to fill in blanks or things I wish we’d seen. Occasionally I’ll be inspired by music, but I never (I don’t think?) write traditional “song fics.” If I write something from a song, I mostly take the premise of the song and run with it. I wrote a West Wing fic based off of “Paper Rings” by Taylor Swift and more recently a Psych fic based off of “Living My Best Life” by Ben Rector. I try to listen to the story the song is telling and turn it into a fic and maybe throw a few Easter eggs of lines from the song in there.

6) What is the fic/edit you've written/created that you're most proud of and why?

Ohh, this is hard. I got a LOT of great feedback on “The First 100 Days.” It was one of the first few fics I wrote for TWW and Josh/Donna, though, and sometimes I feel like I wrote them better a while later. I sometimes think about going back and beefing it up. But I’m really proud of it because of how much people loved it. And it was a big undertaking which I totally underestimated (I originally envisioned writing all 100 moments in one chapter lol no way) and it was a ton of fun summer 2021, I worked on it almost every day that summer.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/31995130/chapters/79248106

Really thinking about this question though, I kept coming back to “i like shiny things (but i’d marry you with paper rings).” Which was not the story I thought I’d pick for this answer. But it started as a tiny moment I envisioned after listening to, obviously, Paper Rings by Taylor Swift. Then it really took on a life of its own and became a big and (I think!) cohesive one-shot put together entirely from a few stray moments that popped into my head when listening to the song. It was quite a task to make it all into one cohesive story and tie all the moments together without (I hope!!!) making it seem cheesy or boring. I also really enjoyed bringing in so many other characters – both Bartlet admin and Santos admin, and making it work having them all together, and having to write more voices than just Josh/Donna. It was a little out of my comfort zone in those ways but I like how it came together.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/36783112

7) What's the fic trope/concept/AU you'd read 1000 of? What's the fic trope/concept/AU you'd write 1000 of?

For reading and writing both I tend to always gravitate towards post-series stuff, for all my fandoms. I think I always crave seeing what happened “next.” I also tend to read stuff that takes place after the ship is already together. Once they’re together in canon, I don’t tend to mess with it (whether I liked how it was done or not!) I just like to go from there.

For West Wing specifically – and I don’t know if this would be considered a trope but I guess it’s a concept – love Hawaii/that transition time period/co-chiefs of staff era stuff. And future/present day. I think it’s so fun how as a fandom there’s a collective headcanon about Josh/Donna’s future and we all sort of write into that and it makes it feel real.

Trope of all tropes would probably be - stuck together somewhere. Especially elevators.

8) Is there anything you'd like to try writing-wise/video editing-wise that you haven't yet?

One thing I haven’t done in West Wing yet is a multi-chapter fic of some sort. I’d like to try that one day. I wrote several of those in the Gilmore Girls fandom (one I think was post-series and the others were my “what would happen?” take after season finales). Those got lost when the GG fic site went down. That might be one thing I’d like to try for West Wing, but the inspiration has to strike!

9) What's your go-to Starbucks/coffee shop/other drink order?

My newest thing at Starbucks is an iced caffe americano with almond milk. I do enjoy a caramel macchiato from time to time. What I’m most consistent with, though, is my turkey bacon breakfast sandwich! You can also catch me drinking peppermint mochas, sugar cookie lattes, pumpkin cold brews, whatever the holiday flavor is during the appropriate season!

10) Do you have any current projects you'd like to promote or anything upcoming you'd like to tell us about?

I haven’t written much since the summer (so THANK you for still featuring me and to the people who submitted questions! I feel like some people must be wondering, “Who is THAT?”) so right now that I’m off work and trying to catch up on various one-shot ideas I had that I never posted/finished.

I had intended to get something up that was Christmas-y, but didn’t make it in time for Christmas. Whoops! I’m still planning to work on it in the next few weeks. It’s sort of a “spin off” of the one-shot I just posted recently about Josh and Donna’s second child being born on Christmas Eve. It will be snippets of her Christmas Eve birthday throughout the years.

I’ve sort of set a goal for myself for the new year (which very quickly may go by the wayside, who knows) to write something each month and maybe even dip back into some other fandoms if I feel the calling.

Submitted questions:

From @S4MWILS0N: fave ship, platonic duo, season, episode, plot arc ? fave outfit, one liner, side character? actor you’d most like to meet irl? media to cross over with tww ? underrated character and or ship ? fave concept/convention from tww fanon ? one thing to change abt tww canon?

Fave ship: Josh/Donna

Platonic duo: Josh & Sam and also love Charlie & Jed!

Season: Season 2

Episode: It’s so hard to pick ONE and I have thought about this extensively, so it’s probably In The Shadow of Two Gunman (I always get goosebumps at the hospital scene and the drama and then there’s also the flashbacks!) with 20 Hours in America a close second (the HUMOR). (Honorable mentions to Noel, 17 People, Election Day 1&2, and Two Cathedrals. See how I got like 9 episodes in there? LOL.)

Plot arc: The Gaza arc. But I also have a big soft spot for the campaign arc in s6/7.

Fave outfit: Big fan of Josh’s sweater and jeans in 17 People orrrr, more akin to what I think this question is asking: CJ’s dress in Galileo or Donna’s Holy Night sweater because it’s just a comforting vibe.

One liner: This is so, so, random: When Josh greets Donna with “Zaoshang hao, Donnatella” in 6.07 A Change is Gonna Come. I kept repeating it for days.

And of course, “Can we HAVE a civilization?!” Kills me every time.

Side character: Margaret!

Actor you’d most like to meet irl? Brad, because I was so, so sad when I was supposed to see him in A Christmas Carol last year and then my performance was in the group of canceled ones. I have met Josh Malina irl and he is a super nice guy.

Media to crossover with TWW? Psych! Something has to be played on from that scene where Gus sees a photo of Martin Sheen and says, “Papa?!” lolol.

Underrated character and/or ship? I LOVE the Santos campaign characters and admin. Like, I would’ve totally watched another season based around them. I would’ve loved to have seen Matt/Helen as president and first lady. So Matt/Helen for ship (though I know they do get some love) and maybe character – Lou? I think they brought a lot to the show in their own ways but when people think about TWW those are the last characters/ships that would come to mind.

Fave concept/convention from TWW fanon? I LOVE that as a fandom it is completely canon now that J/D go to Hawaii after Transition. Like, that’s never specified in the show whatsoever but it is completely accepted and valid in the entire fandom and no one thinks twice about where the destination was. I’ve never seen anything like that in a fandom before.

One thing to change about canon? The leak storyline. Which I’m sure many have said SO to change it up- I really wish the last line of the series had been, “What’s next?” instead of “Tomorrow.” It was right there.

“When I say ‘What’s next,’ it means I’m ready to move on.” And then… we move on.

From @jessbakescakes: If you could write an episode of TWW that takes place today, what would you include?

This is such a fun question! I think I would definitely have to include how technology and social media have come into play today. I can just imagine the spiral that CJ or Josh would go into over a Tweet or some photo of a member of the senior staff acting questionable being captured and posted by someone in the public. If we think Josh went nuts engaging with the fans on Lemon Lyman imagine what he’d do on Twitter when it’s about politics and policy. Of course, Donna has to keep him off Twitter. Maybe she changes his passwords all the time so he can’t get in and it’s like a running joke.

From the editors: Describe your writing style in 10 words or less! (We know this is hard for a Sorkin fandom, where we use 50 words to say what we could say in 25.)

I like to create the moments we never saw.

From the editors (borrowed from a past Q&A, originally asked by @jessbakescakes): Is there a fic that you’ve written that started out in one spot and ended up in a wildly different place? If so, which one and how did it evolve?

This is a great question! I don’t think I have any fic that went wildly different, but when I wrote “Our Family Has Grown By Four Feet,” https://archiveofourown.org/works/38420989 it was meant to be a little one-shot in my one-shot collection. I mentioned in another story a little passing remark of how the Moss-Lyman family adopted their dog and I decided to write that out. But it took on a life of its own and became its own standalone story instead.

Another one is “Guess I Always Knew This Day Was Coming” https://archiveofourown.org/works/34028611 which I wrote for @jessbakescakes in an exchange. It is one of my least favorite things I’ve written and I always wish I’d given her a better gift! I changed direction with that one a LOT of times. It started out being more Josh/Donna centric but was one of the first stories I wrote that became more of a Josh study - it became more about Josh and his mom.

From the editors (borrowed from a past Q&A, initially asked by @sinistercherubs): what’s your dream bottle episode plot for tww? anything you desire, nothing is stopping them.

I LOVE bottle episodes. Those are always my faves in many fandoms. I’m totally just creating this answer on a whim (and will probably think of something better, later!) but I really have a lot of love for both the Bartlet and the Santos admin characters. So I’d love an episode where they’re all together and we can see how they would all interact. Maybe something during the transition phase where they’re all meeting together to overcome some issue. Obviously Toby should be included too so we will erase the leak storyline (as it should be).

I want to say thank you so much for featuring me! I know I haven’t been super active writing lately, so I really appreciate being featured. In fact, this has inspired me a bit to get back into it! I’m always lurking on twitter though! @bimadabomily

Happy New Year!!!

Thanks again to BimadaBomily for chatting with us! And thank you to everyone who submitted questions! If you’d like to be featured in a future Creator Spotlight, send us a message on tumblr, email [email protected], or DM us on twitter!

xx, What’s Next?

#the west wing #west wing #tww #tww fandom #tww fic #tww fic rec #creator spotlight #josh lyman #donna moss #josh x donna #sam seaborn #ainsley hayes #sam x ainsley #fanfic writers #fic writing

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