An “OTP challenge” is a challenge to draw or write a piece of fanfic about a fandom’s One True Pairing every day for thirty days. It started with this August 2012 posting at “One Hundred Suns” and started spreading around Tumblr after that. (You can use this link to see what other people are doing with the concept: at least the ones who’ve remembered to tag their posts.)

DD became interested in this concept on seeing what the very talented gaming and webcomic artist Reapersun had just done with Day 1 — “raising the bar quite high”, DD says— and became interested in doing one for the YW universe herself. Here are the links to the posts so far.

PLEASE NOTE that this material is presently being moved post by post to its new home here at the Interim Errantry website… so for a while, some of these posts will continue to open at their Tumblr addresses.

1: Holding hands | 2: Cuddling somewhere | 3: Gaming / watching a movie | 4: On a date | 5: Kissing | 6: Wearing each other’s clothes | 7: Cosplaying | 8: Shopping | 9: Hanging out with friends | 10: With animal ears | 11: Wearing kigurumis | 12: Making out | 13: Eating ice cream | 14: Genderswapped | 15: In a different clothing style | 16: During their morning rituals | 17: Spooning | 18: Doing something together | 19: In formal wear | 20: Dancing | 21: Cooking / baking | 22: In battle, side by side | 23: Arguing | 24: Making up afterwards | 25: Gazing into each other’s eyes | 26: Getting married | 27: On one of their birthdays | 28: Doing something ridiculous | 29: Doing something sweet | 30: Doing something hot

From DD’s original post on this concept / project at Tumblr:

“Nita’s question on Day 1 is pertinent. “Is this canonical?” The quick answer for this is “Some of it, sooner or later, yeah.” Those who’ve referred to these postings as “fanfic in her own universe”, I think may have kind of grabbed the concept by the wrong handle. I’m not sure this actually can be fanfic, since I doubt I qualify as a fan of the Young Wizards material except in the most general sense (well, of course I’m a fan of it, I wouldn’t be writing it otherwise, would I? — but that’s not usually what we mean when we say “fan”: usually you’re a fan of something of somebody else’s, yes?). Anyway, I’m this fictional universe’s creator / copyright owner / sole arbiter of what is to be construed as canon, which it seems should confer a different sort of status on this material than if I were writing in someone else’s universe. Whatever: I’m definitely using some of these episodes to work out material which will be of use in canon, and which is more than likely to eventually appear in the conventionally published books…possibly somewhat changed, but not necessarily. (Someone asked: will you be gathering this material together for publication as an ebook? Answer: Sure, why not? When it’s done.)

“It should also be mentioned that I’m viewing this material more or less from the point of view that’s being established in the YW New Millennium Edition timelines. The new timeline hasn’t been worked out completely as yet — it’ll still be in process until we get through to the new version of book 9 — but considering Nita and Kit to be around 16 here, and possibly even a bit older, would probably be helpful. Those more familiar with the old timeline should simply know that in the NME timeline, Kit’s “skipped a grade” issue of the original timeline has been dropped in favor of the idea that he’s in an “advanced track” for his grade. His age is the same as Nita’s (in the new timeline, both being born in 1995: his difference in grade is due to the local school district’s policy on what month children have to be born by, in a given year, to be admitted to kindergarten at age 6. …But one other thought: since it’s a trope invoked more than casually in the YW books, time travel may occur.

“And a last issue, while it’s on my mind. Some people here and there have expressed concern or mild disappointment about the fact that I’m invoking Nita and Kit here as my OTP. Let me throw a few thoughts into the mix, for those concerned to consider:

I may not be using “OTP” in exactly the sense that many people use it. When I think of the YW ‘verse, Nita and Kit are, for me, the first pairing I think of, yes. But this, like everything else, is subject to change without notice.

Such usage should not be construed as automatically implying romance… at least not the usual kind of romance. Terms like “boyfriend” and “girlfriend” are merely convenient labels, often more convenient for those outside the relationship than those inside it: and the characters involved are aware of this (as will become obvious in Games Wizards Play).

“And most to the point:

Such usages as “OTP” and the girlfriend/boyfriend dyad — insofar as they get used — should not be taken to imply that such usages are necessarily permanent. This series of books is far from over, and there are developments awaiting, further along in the timeline, that some people will probably find… surprising. But if anyone’s expecting me to do “the usual thing”, or what passes for it in other YA fantasy series, I should warn you that you’re likely to be mistaken.

“So: onward. And have fun!”

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