[Podcast] Mac + Cheese + Podfic

As always, we've got recs, trailers, a rant and a cold read for this this bleary beginning of the year. This podcast comes with a suggestion that you have snacks or a meal available as pretty much everything in it is guaranteed to make you hungry.

Roadmap and timings in chapter 2 and all the links in chapter 3. Enjoy!

Chapter 2: The Main Course

Chapter Text

Podcast: Mac + Cheese + Podfic with Jelly and Kisa (2:16:34 | 187 Mb)
Stream or download at that link

Podcast Roadmap

01:07 Intros and hellos
09:22 Podfic recs (see next chapter for links!)
31:15 Jelly's ~~rant~~ ~~discussion~~ rant
1:05:20 Extended Trailer for A Sure Thing, written by mrsronweasley, read and edited by jellyfishfire (95,676 words, rated Explicit, No Archive Warnings Apply, tags include Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Sugar Daddy, Sex Work, Light Dom/sub, Aftercare, Semi-Public Sex, Exhibitionism, Bondage, use of sex toys, boundary setting, Relationship Negotiation, many baths, Barebacking)
1:15:28 Fic recs (see next chapter for links!)
1:48:23 Trailer for Heat It Up! with Wei Ying, written by justpeace, read by kisahawklin, edited by jellyfishfire (10,798 words, rated Teen and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply, tags include coworkers to dating, Getting Together, Food, Chinese Character, Chinese American character, Chinese Food, racism that largely happens offscreen, workplace racism, toxic workplace environment, Workplace Relationship, food as a metaphor for racism, Humor, Happy Ending, Angst and Humor, running bits involving pop culture references, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, food as a metaphor for flirting, References to Drugs, Alcohol, Asian-American Character)
1:50:06 Cold read of the best laid plans are fully cooked, written by annadream, read by kisahawklin (rating General Audiences, No Archive Warnings Apply, tags include Cooking, Domestic Fluff, Post-Canon)
2:12:56 Thank-yous and goodbyes

Chapter 3: After Dinner Mint

Chapter Text

Podfic Recs

proof by contradiction, written by chinxe, read by God of Laundry Baskets (GoLB)
Podfic length: 19:36, Rating: Teen and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Post-Canon, Humor, brother-in-law-ly bonding, jc is an angry grape who won't admit he and lwj are friends, but (and u didn't hear this from me) they kinda are

fish & wild geese, written by impossibletruths, read by raitala
Podfic length: 3:08:31, Rating: Teen and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Farm/Ranch, Poetry, Grief/Mourning, Cooking, Catharsis, Food as a Metaphor for Love, Hunger as a Metaphor for Grief, Farming as a Metaphor for Healing, There Are Lots Of Metaphors In Here Ok, The Author Isn't Joking About The Poetry Thing, Overzealous Use Of Imagery
kisahawklin note: I JUST realized this has 4 chapters and I ONLY LISTENED TO THE FIRST ONE, so the entire podfic is actually 3 hours long, and the full podfic is linked in chapter 4. ENJOY!

Longevity Noodles, written by magicgenetek, read by fensandmarshes
Podfic length: 7:42, Rating: General Audiences, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Cooking, Grief/Mourning, Birthday, Character Undeath, Post-Canon, Fluff

Fic Recs

Chef's Kiss, written by 74243
Word count: 6539, Rating: Explicit, Author Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Tags Include: Female Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī/Female Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, Female Niè Míngjué, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Strap-Ons, Ours - Taylor Swift.mp3, Lan Zhan's eight dicks, Light Dom/sub

like blue flame over my fingertips, written by tangerinechar
Word count: 37,283, Rating: Teen and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - College/University, Mutual Pining, 5+1 Things, Food as a Metaphor for Love, lwj and jzx being reluctant bros

Your Heart, My Table, written by Spodumene
Word count: 30,603, Rating: General Audiences, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Canada, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst with a Happy Ending, Family Dynamics, Parent Death, Supporting Character Death, Chinese New Year, Food, Comfort Food, food is love, Getting Together, food as a love language

mating rituals, written by detectorist
Word count: 16,915, Rating: Explicit, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - College/University, Humour, Pining, Getting Together, Idiots in Love, The Rituals Are Intricate, pursuing your crush with recklessly extravagant acts of service: the jin zixuan story, pursuing your crush by accidentally texting him that he's a whiny bottom: the lan zhan story, somehow it works out for both of them

bedtime stories, written by Wildehack
Word count: 1598, Rating: General Audiences, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include:obligatory soup story, soup is a love language

Other food stories found and enjoyed while searching for the fic recs!

Your Cup of Tea, written by kuro
Word count: 1828, Rating: General Audiences, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Awkward Flirting, Secret Crush, Coffee, Tea

blue skies from now on, written by cafecliche
Word count: 2767, Rating: General Audiences, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Family Dinners, my 'the Wens as Wangxian's downstairs neighbors' agenda, Food as Love

It's Wife Cake, Wei Ying, written by stiltonbasket
Word count: 3486, Rating: General Audiences, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Bakery, Baker Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, First Meetings, Soft Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī/Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, ft. feral teenager xue yang, POV Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī, Happy Ending, Food as a Metaphor for Love, Love at First Sight

Tangible Memories (Will Last For Years), written by a healthydoseof
Word count: 1557, Rating: General Audiences, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Tags Include: Inspired by "Getting Jet Lag From Time Travelling" (Monyas), Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Age Difference, Fluff, Food, Developing Friendships

we are fed, written by Anonymous
Word count: 7901, Rating: Mature, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Single Parent Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī, Dadji, Kid Fic, Established Relationship, Food as a Metaphor for Love, Fluff, Marriage Proposal, they are almost married!! with a son!!!, 5+1 Things, the Wei Ying Can Cook agenda

the secret ingredient, written by queengee
Word count: 8167, Rating: Teen and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, ayyy get it?, Baking, Idiots in Love, Pining, Light Angst

smile for me, written by kuro
Word count: 8536, Rating: Teen and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Fluff, Jealousy, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - College/University, Bicycles, just very very self-indulgent, does it have a plot?, no but who cares at this point, Coffee, is probably a character in this fic, Siblings

Third Chime's the Charm, written by Regency_Bunny
Word count: 3419, Rating: General Audiences, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Fluff, Fluff without Plot, Dubious Plot, WangXian, sweets/candy/lollies/confectionery, sweet shop & sweet encounters, Dad Wei Ying, Sweet, Marshmallow Bunnies, Chocolate, Lan Huan and Lan JingYi cameos, not a meet cute but they meet and it’s cute, Kid Fic, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting

Trailers

Extended Trailer for A Sure Thing, written by mrsronweasley, read and edited by jellyfishfire (95,676 words, rated Explicit, No Archive Warnings Apply, tags include Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Sugar Daddy, Sex Work, Light Dom/sub, Aftercare, Semi-Public Sex, Exhibitionism, Bondage, use of sex toys, boundary setting, Relationship Negotiation, many baths, Barebacking)
Trailer for Heat It Up! with Wei Ying, written by justpeace, read by kisahawklin, edited by jellyfishfire (10,798 words, rated Teen and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply, tags include: coworkers to dating, Getting Together, Food, Chinese Character, Chinese American character, Chinese Food, racism that largely happens offscreen, workplace racism, toxic workplace environment, Workplace Relationship, food as a metaphor for racism, Humor, Happy Ending, Angst and Humor, running bits involving pop culture references, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, food as a metaphor for flirting, References to Drugs, Alcohol, Asian-American Character)

Jelly and Kisa thematically appropriate works (nominally) not included in the podcast

Cold read of Summer Rain, written by Sweetlittlevampire, read by kisahawklin
Podfic length: 1:31:52, Rating: Teen and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Romance, Getting to Know Each Other, Getting Together, Happy Ending, Rabbits, Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī Loves Rabbits, Alternate Universe - Farm/Ranch, Cottagecore Wangxian, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Nielan is a background ship in this one

Podfic of One Good Thing, written by Yuu_chi, read by jellyfishfire
Podfic length: 2:39:14, Rating: Teen and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply, Tags Include: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst and Humor, Angst with a Happy Ending
kisahawklin note: I'm including this one because there is a delightful bit in it where they try to get Wei Ying to eat, and the whole of the idea is pretty cool, especially when Lan Zhan figures out it needs to be spicy

Series this work belongs to:

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Kudos

CrabMeat111, Ephippiarius, AlessNox, CandaianKat, MeiJhaT, dangercupcake, IheartReading, romanceismycallingcard, Kittymay, cleo57, Nic_meezermom, illegiblelies, Lamaki, Madhatter11, Spinifex, Witchahazel, SeaBear13, Lost_fox_charlie, flamingwell, ExileInIL, Spatz, Zuste, luckymoonly, celli, Binky01, the_anon_bird, clmoryel, emakatani, justpeace, and the_ship_has_sailed as well as 2 guests left kudos on this work!

Comments

mrsronweasley on Chapter 1 Mon 31 Jan 2022 12:47PM UTC

Oh my gosh, this is SO SO COOL!!!

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1. kisahawklin on Chapter 1 Mon 31 Jan 2022 04:02PM UTC
  
  Ahhhhhhh, your story is so cool! I was reading it again last night and had to stop so I could get some sleep but OH MY GOD I love it so much. And Jelly's trailer is just SO GOOD, I love both her reading and her editing. Glad you liked it! :D :D :D
  
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flamingwell on Chapter 2 Mon 07 Feb 2022 06:25AM UTC

A delight as ever! I will say that listening to jelly's rant inspired me to add authors from my bookmarks to the FPS list, which I did while listening to the rest of the podcast. So congratulations there!
I'm definitely with you on the ideal state of affairs being that people should add statements to their profiles if they don't want transformative works, rather than if they're okay with them. That being said, I have some understanding of why things ended up the way they did to, especially for podfic. In the early days especially, there was an issue with reposting fic without credit, and I think some people who were traumatized by that put podfic in the same category as reposting, since it was using the author's exact words unlike something like fan art. That resulted in podfic specifically having an ask first culture. I also know that several authors who I have either asked permission from or interacted with on discord or whatever didn't realize that blanket permission statements were a thing, so I think that's not necessarily as common knowledge in fandom as we want it to be. I also talked to at least one author who was super enthusiastic about podfic, but thought that podficcers were a lot more upset about repods than most of us are, and wanted to make sure that a podficcer could "claim" a specific fic of theirs so that they wouldn't be upset if they put in a bunch of work and then someone else also podficced the same fic.
Oh lord, this comment turned into a mini "discussion" itself, didn't it? Well, hope you enjoy prompting my tangent here! I loved the whole podcast, I just have a whole lot of thoughts about blanket permission myself lol!
For the record, bacon is acceptable in mac and cheese, but none of the other additions y'all discussed are in any way okay and you are both monsters. But tuna is especially egregious. Tuna?? Really???

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1. kisahawklin on Chapter 2 Tue 01 Mar 2022 05:54PM UTC
  
  God Dana, I've been sitting on this comment until I had brain to answer and I think the answer to that is that I WILL NEVER HAVE BRAIN TO ANSWER and you'll just have to live with my rambling stream-of-consciousness bullshit. Sorry?
  I'm... I just have a different understanding of podfic permissions, from what I've read. It's all ages ago, lol, I stumbled on years-old discussions about permissions that weren't even the first go-round and it seemed to center mostly around a vague sense of requiring permission because you were using another work in its entirety? Similar to translation, which is also a type of fanwork that has a permission-based structure. So yeah, like reposting, though reposting wasn't a thing back then, at least in my fandom memory, I could be wrong, I don't presume to speak for fandom. But it's a very long-standing conversation that certainly happened before I started podficcing and likely before I was even in fandom. Though my early days in fandom, in Stargate: Atlantis, it was seen more as art, almost, like a really welcome way to let someone know how much their story affected you? But I wasn't in the podfic community back then, so maybe even then there were "omg this author hasn't answered my request for permission" or whatever? I dunno.
  I think in general, people just tend to think "oh everyone thinks like me" about stuff like repods or permissions (there was a reddit thread where most of the people on it basically said "having blanket permissions just feels so self-aggrandizing, who would want to podfic my stuff?" to which I go.... what the actual fuck? I cannot even conceive of that point of view, it literally makes me want to smash things. OBVIOUSLY IF YOU DON"T HAVE PERMISSION NO ONE WILL PODFIC YOUR STUFF, SO GOOD JOB FULFILLING THAT SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECY THERE. Just. What the fuck. BP is such an exhausting subject, and there's just SO MUCH wrong thinking about it, I cannot. Though I'll tell you, one of the things I have always done in my professional life is to ask forgiveness rather than permission, so I've done stuff and then, if I get questioned about it, what usually happens is that instead of stopping, the wheels move forward to make what I was doing the new process. I don't presume to do that for the podfic community, but I have thought on occasion of just... doing cold reads and podfics and not asking permission and posting them, and letting the request be notification that hey, I've made a thing. It would be an interesting test case if someone did that, the author came back and said "NO" and then there'd have to be some kind of discussion/arbitration as to whether or not my transformative work of their transformative work was okay. It's tempting to be the guinea pig on that one.
  Okay, that's enough of that.
  The tuna, I've discovered through discussions with my wife, was a "broke college students" thing where it was a way to put more protein cheaply into a cheap meal. Also, it reminds me of tuna casserole, which is a thing I loved as a kid? But me now would not eat that anymore, and I'm glad to not have to. So yeah, I get that. I will NEVER get ketchup or bolognese sauce though, like what the fuck? No thank you. I will stand by veg, though. But I can put peas in most things and be happy. I love them on mashed potatoes too. *shrug* We all have our weirdnesses.
  
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2. 1. flamingwell on Chapter 2 Wed 02 Mar 2022 06:11AM UTC
    
    Fascinating to have such different understandings of Ye Olden Fandom Days. I sure as hell wasn't in early podficcing world even as a lurker, so all I know is Lore Passed Down From the Forebears, so *shrug*. Probably the answer is all of the above, in different fandom niches. Fandom is wide indeed!
    The vegetables thing is allowed to pass on thin ice I suppose. But ketchup and bolognese is also Forbidden!
    
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  2. 1. kisahawklin on Chapter 2 Thu 03 Mar 2022 05:05AM UTC
      
      Right?! The corner of fandom you're in makes such a huge difference to your fandom experience! I do know that when Jelly and I did a panel at con.txt a couple of years ago, and people I knew as SGA podficcers attended and had such different viewpoints from the people I know who are podficcing now. FASCINATING. It was definitely interesting to see the shift of fandom zeitgeist.
      YAS! NO KETCHUP, NO BOLOGNESE! :D :D :D :D
      
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ExileInIL on Chapter 3 Sat 05 Feb 2022 09:05PM UTC

Damn it. You reminded me of the wonderful podfic Fish and Wild Geese, which sent me down the wonderful and melancholy rabbit hole of feels. And thank you for so many other wonderful recs (yeah, I'm mostly here for the recs, lol).
Much as I love you both, I have to point out the error of your ways. Because Kraft Dinner, as in the disgusting powdered crap that you mix with milk and butter, should not exist upon this earth. If you want a FAR SUPERIOR Kraft mac and cheese, you have to get the Kraft DELUXE, which is the one that comes with a pack of actual cheese sauce that you squeeze out, not powdered junk. Alas I can no longer indulge in the joy that is Kraft Deluxe, in any of its many flavor incarnations, due to dietary restrictions, but I still make it for my daughter and sneak a bite now and then. 😸

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1. kisahawklin on Chapter 3 Sun 06 Feb 2022 02:58AM UTC
  
  oh nooooo no no no no no. No I will not let that stand. That "cheese-like substance" that is included with Kraft Deluxe is literally one step below velveeta. Gross. Grooooooossssssss. No.
  I will say that mac and cheese with REAL cheese is not even touched by KD or mac and cheese, but the plasticy squeeze cheez is just. No.
  Ahh, that Fish & Wild Geese is my listen for tomorrow - I'm driving home, so I've got about 3 hours of driving - and I hadn't realized there were multiple chapters so I am SO EXCITE to hear the rest of it! :D :D :D
  
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2. 1. ExileInIL on Chapter 3 Wed 16 Feb 2022 12:38AM UTC
    
    Yeah the squeeze cheese isn't exactly homemade, but at least it's NOT POWDER. 😸 And there's different flavors, the white cheddar black pepper isn't bad, especially if generously garnished with Real freshly grated sharp cheese. Tho I think Cracker Barrel is better (more expensive, but worth it).
    Anywaaay, did I miss it in the podcast, or did you mention what the theme is next month?
    
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  2. 1. kisahawklin on Chapter 3 Wed 16 Feb 2022 03:16AM UTC
      
      Hahahah you know, fair. I'm the same about hot chocolate - powdered hot chocolate is just... not good. I don't eat much of any of it generally because gluten but I think the powdered stuff is mostly childhood nostalgia.
      Next month's theme is sports! In honor of the Olympics. (I am an Olympics nut, another childhood nostalgia thing.)
      
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Binky01 on Chapter 3 Sun 06 Feb 2022 01:04PM UTC

I had a lot of fun listening (so much in fact, that I missed my bus stop, getting home from board game night 🙄)
I always have entire conversations in my head while listening to you guys talk - but as I’m driving 80% of the listening time, hanging on to my notes is difficult. So you’ll have to make do with my appreciation only 😘

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1. kisahawklin on Chapter 3 Mon 07 Feb 2022 05:43AM UTC
  
  Ahhahhaha, you should record yourself sometime!!! I would love to listen to that! Not that we don't appreciate the appreciation, but it would be such a fun recursive thing to just having audio reactions to audio fanworks.... awesome.
  Sorry about missing your stop though!!!!
  
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2. 1. ExileInIL on Chapter 3 Wed 16 Feb 2022 12:41AM UTC
    
    Wow, that would be totally cool. YouTube is filled with so many "Reaction" videos, I think for podfics or a podcast like this, that would be great for others in the same fandom to share their thoughts along with it.
    
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  2. 1. kisahawklin on Chapter 3 Wed 16 Feb 2022 03:16AM UTC
      
      Right?! Jelly and I have sent reaction recordings to podfics before, and the last voiceteam go-round had everyone leaving audio comments which was cool as fuck. I love that kind of thing!
      
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Spinifex on Chapter 3 Wed 02 Mar 2022 02:52AM UTC

Spodumenayyyyy is apparently spodumeen but I like to think it’s pronounced like it’s going to Mardi Gras in stilettos and a feather boa 🥂👌🏿🌈🎉

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1. kisahawklin on Chapter 3 Wed 02 Mar 2022 03:15AM UTC
  
  Oh my GOD thank youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu and also, amaaaaazing! I agree!
  
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2. 1. Spinifex on Chapter 3 Sun 13 Mar 2022 12:47PM UTC
    
    I can't even claim ignorance anymore - I asked them to record a message to their readers for their podfic and they did not use The Flamboyant Version (alas)
    
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  2. 1. kisahawklin on Chapter 3 Sun 13 Mar 2022 04:08PM UTC
      
      Ahhh, sadness! I have a friend whose name I pronounced very stately in my head, and then when I met her, she pronounced it for me and I was like. Oh. That's... a bit. Something else. But I suppose everyone gets to pick their own pronunciation.
      
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romanceismycallingcard on Chapter 3 Thu 04 Aug 2022 06:04AM UTC

Okay so I'm like, you know, casually, seven months late to this party. But! I freaking LOVE this!
I don't know if you guys read for non-wangxian pairs much. I think you limit the recs to just wangxian? But oh well! I want to recommend this fic! It's Nie Mingjue/Jiang Cheng - The Choicest Cut by Pyrria. And it's just really good and fun and sweet!! And so much food. Wholesome bonding over making food together. It's so good!

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1. kisahawklin on Chapter 3 Thu 04 Aug 2022 03:13PM UTC
  
  Oooh that sounds awesome! We tend toward WangXian but we definitely read other pairs. I read a Lan Jingyi/Ouyang Zizhen one at some point, and a Wen Qing/Jiang Cheng one, I think? So yeah, definitely read other pairings, and I will go check that out! We're thinking of doing a retrospective with a few new recs for each podcast we've done so far, so that could definitely make the list!
  
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2. 1. romanceismycallingcard on Chapter 3 Thu 04 Aug 2022 04:35PM UTC
    
    Okay awesome!! I hope you like it! Just looking it up to recommend it made me want to reread it so badly.
    
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IheartReading on Chapter 3 Wed 07 Sep 2022 08:57PM UTC

What a lovely discovery, finding this podcast! I thought, partway through, that I should go back and listen in order. But I didn't feel like it! I'm a huge fan of podfics because I can do boring stuff like chores or fun stuff like gardening and crochet... extra good chemicals (-: Thanks!
Question... I'm not on Tumblr or Twitter... is there somewhere with a wonderful list of Wangxian podfics? Maybe some secret podfic listing? Wangxian drew me in to AO3, thanks to my daughter and the panini. Not ready to give them up yet!

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1. kisahawklin on Chapter 3 Fri 09 Sep 2022 03:02AM UTC
  
  Ahahahahaha, no need - these podcasts are all self-standing, I think, me n' Jelly are way to scatterbrained to try and remember shit from one podcast to the next. :)
  Podfic is the BEST for that stuff, lol, glad to be there to accompany you through that sort of thing!
  Well... the easiest place is WangXian podfic recs on Twitter, but even they can't get to the whole of the AO3, so here's a filtered search for WangXian podfics on the AO3. It's not a rec list, but it is sorted by kudos, so it's a fair start. There are 646 works, so I think there's a fair bit to be going on with there. :)
  
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2. 1. IheartReading on Chapter 3 Mon 19 Dec 2022 09:32PM UTC
    
    I forgot to say thanks for the rec!
    
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  2. 1. kisahawklin on Chapter 3 Wed 21 Dec 2022 04:23AM UTC
      
      You are most welcome! I hope it has given you many hours of podfic nirvana! <3
      
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