u/VeelaQuill2000

You may now all breathe a collective sigh of relief. I know I did, but that’s only because I broke the event page four times (but hopefully fixed it before any of you noticed). 

In the spirit of the event, we are not posting “winners” but have maintained top voted fics by category as standouts throughout the event. They are available for your browsing pleasure at tinyurl.com/bestofdramione2026. 

Some of you may have noticed a lot of fic recs on social media in the last 72 hours, featuring the #BestofDramione2026. That’s because over one hundred fandom enthusiasts have been following this event and were waiting in the wings until it ended to support writers. Many have already posted, some are still working, and there is still more to come (that takes a little longer in terms of content creation). Others noticed a social media flood about this before the event closed. I’d like to formally apologize about how excited people got…but I can’t genuinely do that…so I won’t. 

Fandom is built on acts of love, and we’re incredibly grateful to each and every one of you who nominated, voted, and celebrated with us. Writers remember kindness for a very long time, and my hope is that we keep making that our top priority. 

Now, quite a few of you have asked whether this is the end.

In the interest of good fun, the answer is absolutely not.

Today, we’ll tell you three things, then for the next nine days, we’ll keep telling you more.

• Day 1: The first fic nominated for this event was When the Wisteria Blooms by counterfeiit1 under the category Best Wholesome Fic. 
• Day 2: The lovely Candlelight_Narrations (@candlrhttc2 on TikTok) is selecting a work to record as a podfic and will announce it once she's received confirmation from the author. Follow her for updates.

We have compiled a list of both writers and (separately) fics, sorted by the highest amount of votes and will release the names of the top ten over. Also before you ask, no, these are not released in order of ranking, we're just pulling them in a random order.

• Top 10 Writer:
  • Alexis_Vale 
  • LyraMBlack
• Top 10  Fic:
  • Green Light
  • The Bride

As a reminder, fics were capped at 10,000 kudos at the time of nomination for inclusion in this event. If you have ideas or suggestions for future iterations of this, let us know!

Y'all, its July. Its so hot outside my feet cook without shoes on and fandom feels like its going through a pressure cooker moment too. Can we have an escape space chat? Lets talk about where we've messed up.

I'll go first. When writing, I once killed off a minor character only to invite him casually to lunch later. I changed the name of another minor thing by accident roughly three chapters after I'd introduced it because I swapped a vowel. Dialogue tags are the bane of my existence. I'll write around a dialogue tag that has a question mark at the end and a lower case subsequent word because even though its technically correct it feels wrong. Writing battle scenes leaves me in a physical state of stress, but I love stories that have them so I do them anyway.

As a reader, I've read so many fics that the name or author alone being referenced will now (rarely) give me the context I need to remember what that fic was without skimming the actual work.

What is messy about your writing process? About your reading process?

This purely fictional screenplay is dedicated to my friend, she knows why :)

SCENE 1

Neville: "Um, Professor...?"

Snape: "This had better involve imminent death, Mr. Longbottom, or at least the threat of it."

(Neville is silent. Snape finally glares up from behind his potion’s desk.)

Snape: "Well?"

Neville: "N-not exactly, sir."

(Snape returns to his book. Neville remains standing.)

Snape: "If you intend to expire, endeavor to do so quietly and limit the mess."

Neville: (Shuffling his feet) "Right. Well. I was actually wondering... hypothetically..."

Snape: "I despise hypotheticals."

Neville: "If someone were invited to the Slytherin common room—no, I mean—not the common room—to a, er..."

Snape: "The Inter-House Unity Party is not in the Slytherin common room, Mr. Longbottom."

Neville: (Sounding entirely relieved) "Right. Yes. That."

(Silence stretches. Neville shifts awkwardly and starts to wonder if his professor has forgotten he is there.)

Snape: "Mystifyingly, you have somehow become less coherent."

Neville: "It's just... Slytherin's hosting it, sir."

Snape: "And to think I feared the sea of green decor might prove too subtle."

Neville: "I was thinking about going..."

Snape: "I’m really not interested, Mr. Longbottom."

Neville: "But some Gryffindors might not like it, because... well... the Slytherins. And the war..." (Neville gestures vaguely at history as he trails off)

Snape: "Are you asking me to forbid Slytherin students from attending an event they are hosting?"

Neville: "No! Nothing like that! I just wondered if... maybe... some guidance could be issued? Letting everyone know it's all right for students from other houses to go?"

Snape: "Something more explicit than the title Inter-House Unity Party?"

Neville: "Well... more along the lines of... would people be allowed to get miffed?"

Snape: “Of course they are, parties are pointless, inane things. I’m miffed just thinking about it."

Neville: "No, I mean... specifically at other students, if they choose to, you know...go?"

Snape: (finally lowering his book) "Mr. Longbottom... are you asking whether I possess the authority to prevent Hogwarts students from becoming cross with you for attending a social function?"

Neville: (turning scarlet) “...I might be…"

Snape: (last iota of patience disapparates) "I highly doubt your housemates find your personal social calendar engrossing. I certainly do not."

Neville: “Well, you see, one or two wondered if Death Eaters might…””

Snape: “The event is hosted by fifth years.” 

Neville: “Yeah, but why—”

Snape: “Because fifth years are idiots.” 

Neville: “Someone said their house might be getting something…some kind…of, er, benefit by hosting the unification? 

Snape: (Blank stare) “They are getting a migraine, but in the end will trudge forward, exactly as they already were.” (Returns to his book.) “You can show yourself out.” 

SCENE 2

(Neville shuffles down a corridor and bumps into Hermione.)

Neville: "'Mione... have you heard about the—"

Hermione: "The party? Yes."

Neville: (Still scarlet) "Oh."

Hermione: (stares, then seems to understand) "Neville, if someone tells you they won’t be your friend anymore because you’re nice to someone else, do you really think they value your friendship, or even respect your personhood?”

Neville: "But... the war..?"

Hermione: (Already walking away) "Ended."

Neville: (Yells) "Yeah but they're still Slytherins!"

Hermione: (Calling back around the corner) "Yes, and I’m still a Gryffindor!"

I've been thinking a lot about beta reading lately.

No matter how experienced we are, every beta reader is going to make mistakes, and the act of even volunteering can feel like a huge ego assertion. Its like saying "I AM qualified enough to help you" (when honestly, I'm not but I love fandom and want to contribute).

If you work up the courage to volunteer, your next hurdle is the moment you want to start giving suggested edits.

How will the writer feel when I suggest they cut part of what they wrote?

Wait, am I allowed to suggest they rephrase a sentence?

What about the bigger picture pacing and structure? Can I offer an opinion on narrative density? Or should I just look for obvious typos?

The anxiety is real, but so is the love for fandom and desire to contribute positively to it. So I'd like to ask anyone who has ever beta'd, what scared you? To writers who have had beta help, what advice or encouragement do you have for those who want to contribute to fandom in this way?

And last but not least (because a bit of drama is fun)...what horrific beta experiences have you had?

He grew up wealthy, so if he wants something, he usually just buys it himself and he has very expensive tastes. However, he also insists he doesn’t want anything and would rather I “not make a fuss.” I just don’t really think that's true though…he pretends not to care but I think he secretly likes the attention. The problem is, our friends don’t always get along and if I bring them all in a room together, well, let's just say sparks might fly. Some things happened a few years ago and well...tempers could easily flair.

He likes fine whiskey, sarcasm, and looking bored. I think everyone expects me to get him a book, but that feels too generic. One friend already suggested a peacock, but he has two! Another suggested a stuffed ferret, but he would hate that.

Signed,
A Desperate Witch

P.S. If your suggestion is "therapy," please note that I HAVE tried and NOBODY but my boyfriend even finished the essay outlining why we all need it.

This came up in the June discussion thread and it got me curious. What do you all think about self promoting your fanfiction?

For those who are shy about it, is it something you wish you were comfortable doing but just aren't?

For those who dive in head head first, where do you self promote? What advice would you give to newbies, or people worried about doing it?

To the readers who aren't writers, where do you find your next reads? Do you have favorite spaces where recs/self promos get shared?

Well well well (insert Leslie Jordan’s voice here, in character as Beverly Leslie). You’ve gotten sucked into Dramione, have you? And you want to do more than just gobble down fics, rinse and repeat? I suppose that's alright, but there are rules and you’d better catch up quick or you might break one and annihilate the entire fandom in the process. 

Oh, a rulebook? Something consolidated? What an adorable question. No we don’t have that. The rules exist in a sort of collective consciousness, passed down through oral tradition, the occasional social media post, and screenshots we’ve saved to document infractions made by others.

I suppose we could give this a shot though. 

Alright folks, what are the fandom rules everybody should know? I only want the REAL ones, please do not go making up your own to add here. That would be entirely inappropriate. Please include any/all relevant penalties associated with the rules you create publish, as the goal of this post is to educate new users and preserve the future of the fandom.

It should go without saying but there is a lot riding on this.

Its pure smut. "But," you say. "That isn't real writing." Well jokes on you, because I aspire to remain an amateur because its fun. Also cowriting is one of the best experiences. You end up saying the most ridiculous things you'd otherwise never imagine could possibly come up in conversation. Like, "is there a sexy way of saying 'balls'?" No friends, there is not.

Anyway, dropping this here with the hope that some of you will chime back with links to the smut you've written so we can be degenerates together.

First to downvote this post wins...well I was going to say bragging rights but if you fessed up you'd probably get banned for the annoyance you've been causing your long suffering mods. Now that I'm actually a bit curious... a purely hypothetical question...what do you win?

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/83735196/chapters/220686366

https://preview.redd.it/t5nyqlkvjx2h1.png?width=510&format=png&auto=webp&s=bfb876acc4076b5ac430468c7b3cf37f8184d364

Yes I know its petty, but so am I. Its annoying to get what sounds like a heartfelt comment, only for the immediate follow up to be "I can really visualize scenes from your story. Can we talk more on >x platform<?" Then they try to take your money.

Does anyone else feel the itch to see how long you can milk the server juice out of those pests? Maybe something like, "I'm going to need to see some proofs of concept before I engage further. Can you mock up a MMC with cheekbones that imply he absolutely understands the intricacies of tax evasion? That's the kind of vibe I'm going for."

Any and all suggestions are welcome (yes my therapist DID already tell me to just block them and move on, yet the urge to go low persists).

I know I know, I said I was writing tonight. Yet somehow I ended up discovering impgflip.com instead and now, I humbly challenge you to a meme war.

GO!

https://preview.redd.it/709o8s14kl2h1.png?width=972&format=png&auto=webp&s=7e3f2af1856d5e751eac5257987a4fe7d40aaffa

https://preview.redd.it/nzyy0rswkl2h1.png?width=915&format=png&auto=webp&s=80fe3486c17d4fc5b7ea0b52fa8a1336dca1cd88

https://preview.redd.it/p8965fnhpl2h1.png?width=957&format=png&auto=webp&s=33f6c11e91bca805f68c4ae711fa735d241c16ed

https://preview.redd.it/un18lrvlpl2h1.png?width=933&format=png&auto=webp&s=674558299125aaa078e129ff85df0988a41710ed

https://preview.redd.it/gqkwhm4npl2h1.png?width=1214&format=png&auto=webp&s=671620471a9a2979061bfe521575bb5d1a56b62b

OP: ConcernedEducationalLeader  (User Flair, “Pretty in pink”) 

I (female, senior educational administrator) recently accepted a teaching position at a school that has, to put it delicately, suffered from years of chaos, rampant rule breaking, and a deeply concerning lack of respect for authority. The current Headmaster is entirely to blame for the state of affairs, as are the faculty. Their incompetence has led to a revolving door of professors in my current seat, most of them didn’t even last a full year, let alone return for a second! 

Naturally, I stepped in to provide structure, accountability, and proper Ministry-approved guidance. The school’s inability to maintain a consistent professor over this subject matter meant the curriculum was in shambles. I had to completely overhaul it while also implementing novel correctional methods to return a semblance of order to the classroom environment. I’ve put in the work though, because someone has to care about the future generation, and I’ve realized its fallen to me to shoulder the weight of this burden.

Despite that fact that one student in particular has made it his personal mission to undermine me, and his little friends have piled on.

He constantly spreads alarmist conspiracy theories, interrupts class, forms unauthorized student groups, and encourages open rebellion against school authority. Wherever he goes, chaos follows. When I attempted to correct this behavior through reflective writing exercises, people somehow twisted it into “child abuse.” It was ONE enchanted quill. Children these days are so dramatic. I got no backing from my fellow teachers (much less a simple thank you!) and had to seek assistance from the Ministry itself. To describe this institution as a highly unprofessional workplace environment is a kindness.

Everyone is acting as though I’m some sort of tyrant simply because I believe children should obey rules, respect the government, and not practice weaponized magic in secret clubs after curfew. 

Now I’m being scapegoated for caring too much.

So. AITA for trying to set students up for success?

EDIT: To everyone asking, yes, the kitten plates were tasteful and morale-boosting. I fail to see how that is relevant.

Here are your clues.

• Author has only written for the Harry Potter fandom.
• Total of 10 works posted.
• Some of them are collabs, some of them art.
• Work ranges from absolutely epic to entirely ridiculous (quite deliberately so).
• One of them is a duology.

You can ask ten questions. Post guesses in spoilers!

I'm thinking of a fic. It made me laugh, and I actually got an in real life friend to read it after only knowing them for 72 hours. Here are your clues.

Tag: Oblivious Idiots

Line: They did not shake hands and she did not see him out

Status: Complete

You may collectively ask ten questions, but if you can't guess it after that, I win.

GO!

The title really says it all, and frankly it’s time to combat the persistent misinformation campaign claiming nobody leaves comments on AO3 anymore. Some of us are out here doing the (Dark) Lord’s work one emotionally devastating under-the-kudos-block sentence at a time, and I refuse to let these heroic endeavors go unrecognized any longer. I am DONE! 

It's time to force the world to acknowledge us, so I ask each of you:

• Have you crafted an AO3 comment so delicious you’ve gone back to read it, mayhaps with a cheeky smirk? Perhaps you didn’t even write it, but it just feels very you (so it still counts here) 
• While deep in your cups, did you experience enlightenment and crack the recipe for creating the perfect comment, every time? 
• Do you have a curated list of comment etiquette opinions (pet peeves) that you feel the masses should hear?

Don’t be shy, go ahead and bestow your wisdom upon the dregs of Dramione Reddit (aka frequenters of this sub). Together, lets push back against the dead fandom propaganda narrative and remind the world that we do indeed own a keyboard. 

I’d say the comment has to be on a Dramione fic, but we all know you hooligans refuse to follow instructions (glares at the Best of Dramione nomination form—you know what you did) so I’m just going to be chill about this. 

**If you share screenshots, please redact any user names that are not your own**