White Collar - Blog Posts

Send them in with your characters!!

~ I HATE YOU BUT I LOVE YOU ~ ENEMIES-TO-LOVERS PROMPTS

requested by: anonymous request: hello I'm writing a lovers to enemies to lovers book but I really need some prompts bc I think there's too much bickering and not enough fluff 😭😭 pls help

Feel free to use and reblog!

saying one thing but meaning the other aka acting hateful but having loving feelings

^ "You're the worst person" *while being super gentle/caring with the other*

"I'd do everything to ensure that they don't get away with it." *literally helping them get away with it*

A: "Ugh, I hate [Person B] so much" C: "But they're so sweet and nice to you." A: "Yeah, exactly. That's so hateful of them."

the other person has always made their blood boil but it takes them a while to realise that the reasons have changed

how can someone be so aggravating and so arousing at the same time?

being mean and provoking upfront just to do nice and thoughtful things behind their back

*both bickering* *Person A suddenly going quiet and grinning at Person B* Person B: "What? Why are you looking at me like that?" Person A: "Because you're just arguing so much with me because you like me." *Person B turning red*: "... nOo..."

realising their feelings for the other person but it just makes them meaner because they're overcompensating (after all, no one should know that they're actually in love with person B)

they have been very snippy and full of snide remarks towards person B but since they realised they have feelings for them their mind goes blank and they go mute in front of person B

avoiding the other person as they're enemies but full on ghosting them once they realise their own feelings for their enemy

trying to mask their feelings in the least obvious way: just openly telling them how they're feeling because they wouldn't believe it anyway

^ "Do you know that you actually have a special place in my heart? Oh, how I love and cherish you!" "Yeah, fuck you too!"

A: "Do you sometimes feel that the line between hate and love can be very thin?" B: "They are the strongest feelings after all. Maybe they're actually the same and it doesn't make a difference whether you hate or love."

A: "Stop messing with me! You could never love me!" B: "Oh, if only you knew! I hate how much I love you!"

Forever thinking about that White Collar episode where Neal and Peter get trapped in a room with no oxygen and Neal passes out.

That was,,, that was the good shit

At the Manor

Bruce: kids, i want you to meet your uncle

Tim: we have an uncle?

Dick: you have a brother??

Cass: 🤯

Bruce: yes. his name is tony. tony stark.

Batkids:

Jason: what.

Tony Stark: hey kids

Jason: what.

Damian: we meet again, uncle.

Tim: you met him?!

Tony: dami, heya! how’s the girlfriend?

Dick: GIRLFRIEND???

Damian, blushing: marinette is well. how fares my cousins?

Jason: COUSINS???

Tony, stepping to the side: ask them yourself

Peter Parker-Stark: hi dames!

Morgan Stark: *waves*

Peter, to bruce: hi uncle b! have you told them about—

Peter, whispering: you-know-what?

Bruce: oh yes, i almost forgot

Bruce, opening his jacket: kids, this is your new brother, danny

Danny Fenton: 👻

Batkids: 😧

Peter, shaking his head: no, not him! the—

Peter, whispering: you-know-what

Bruce, realizing: oh yes, i go by neal caffrey now

Batkids: 😧

Ladybug, outside: miraculous ladybug!

Tony, disappearing: pete, i don’t feel so good

Peter, swarmed by ladybugs: dad no!

Twilight Sparkle, appearing: don’t worry we can fix this

Twilight Sparkle: with the power of friendship!

*a true true friend starts playing*

Batkids: 😧

happy april fools

That’s not the way you walk in real life, is it? Neal Caffrey is one of the few characters on television where you would remark on the way he walks.

No, my god. I wish I was that kind of peacock. Yeah, I locked myself in our guest room for about – I would say like 2 or 3 weeks working on that. And then I would walk around my block and the house. I only had one suit to my name when I got this job – maybe two. And I would put it on and walk around my block. I’m sure I looked like a complete loon in L.A. But I would walk around just figuring out how he moved through the world. We hadn’t even filmed the pilot, but I knew a lot of it was going to play in masters and us walking around together, so I figured I should figure out that part of his physicality. - Matt Bomer [13:00]

To whomever is interested: I am participating in Fandom Trumps Hate this year! It's a charity auction: you bid on offers & donate money directly to (selected) charities when you win. In return, you get gifted a personalized fandom gift as a thank you.

My auction page can be found here

The past two years, it's been a pleasure reading the stories written as a thank you for me and conversing with my favourite creators. This year, I'm hoping to enjoy the creator side of the auction as well & I am looking forward to seeing what I can gift away 🤓.

I'm offering a fanart gift for the fandoms: Timeless, White Collar or any of Naomi Novik's published work (Temeraire, Uprooted, Spinning Silver, Scholomance) respectively.

For Timeless fans: the incomparable SallyExactly is hosting an auction as well. She's one of my absolute favorite fandom writers, and seeing as it's good for charity: see if you can outbid me! 🫣🤫😎

Bidding is open till Sun March 5th 2023 8:00 pm EST - so don't wait too long if you're interested!

Fanfic Rec List (mostly Timeless)

Since starting this blog, I created 24 fanfic sketchnotes & I can now create a mosaic that covers nearly a square meter. So, in celebration of all these amazing stories I got to recommend, join me in this (massive) compilation post with links to all the stories & the sketchnotes (for more detail on my recommendations). I categorized the stories and I wish to celebrate all you amazing writers & artists today! Thank you for sharing your stories & art.

I hope you forgive the massive amount of namedropping I am about to do. (Also: I love reading the responses when people see my sketchnotes - so feel free to respond, sent me a note or engage in conversations :-) ). I’m also always on the lookout for more stories to read: I particularly like found family, recovery, mission fic, general or rare pair stories & maturity in characters & conversations. I like adults leaving teen drama behind and dealing with things like the adults they are. Angst is a favorite too, and I enjoy the multiverse of AUs. (Honestly: I’m a pretty eclectic reader).

Timeless

The show that pulled me back into fandom & fanfic & to all you wonderful people. The full list is under a read-more, cause this post got LONG.

Historical / Mission

The Only Way Out by @sallyexactly

Author’s summary: Chinatown leaves the team shattered and grieving, but their only option is to stumble forward. To save the world, they'll need strength of character they didn't know they had, to defeat depths of evil like they've never seen. Meanwhile, they need to find a way to decide their own future, not give up hope... and save the fighting for the actual bad guys. It's honestly a toss-up which of those will be hardest.

This story is my headcanon of how the series ended. It is long (300000+ words) but well-worth it. It's got history, slow and mature development and an intelligent resolution. I reread it frequently and although I have wanted to capture my response in a (series of) sketchnote, I never managed it to my satisfaction. The story is beautiful and feels cathartic (and well-worth rereading over and over).

The Road Ode by @sallyexactly  - my sketchnote

Post-canon. Roadtrip with our favourite historian & lots of historical markers on the way. 107937 words.

The Gutter and the Stars by @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels - my sketchnote

Oscar Wilde. Short (1397 words) & funny.

No End, No Beginning by MandyCandy - my sketchnote

Ambitious plan & canon divergent. Tecumseh. With a full bibliography. 65068 words.

Parallel Lines by @x-voyevoda - my sketchnote

Multiverse. Post-canon. Rated mature. Work-in-Progress. 71911 words.

Zajednički by @insane-sociopath - my sketchnote

Retelling of season 2. PTSD. More missions included. Incomplete. 129474 words.

Evocative / Poetic / Philosophical / Makes Me Think

Burn the Witch by barefootwithneonhands - my sketchnote

Evocative. Poetic & fascinating to no end. 19534 words.

Two Roads by @oldshrewsburyian - my sketchnote

How do you live your life while waiting for a future you once so tantalisingly glimpsed but barely dared hope for? Denise Christopher pondering her choices. 835 words.

The Nuclear Option by RedGold (@timelesshonesttrailer) - my sketchnote

“Sometimes… sometimes change happens because a thousand voices cry out and make themselves heard, many moving parts of some Rube-Goldberg Machine. But… from time to time… it just takes one person, making one decision, and that changes the fate of the world.” Jessica-centric. 6036 words

A Shot of Remembrance by @doctorliamsr - my sketchnote

Garcia & Karl. Season 1. 1093 words.

Scorched Earth by @sallyexactly - my sketchnote

Garcia & Lucy. Evocative language. 2695 words.

Ballet-Feerie by @oldshrewsburyian & @qqueenofhades - my sketchnote

Ballet AU. Dance as language. Authors’ summary: “Garcia Flynn teaches ballet to a class including Amy Preston. Lucy Preston has been her younger sister's guardian since they were orphaned. Hesitant conversations and fraught silences ensue. Also, there's Tchaikovsky.”  16799 words.

Alternate Universe

Finding Light in Darkness - by Ultra - my sketchnote

19-century Governess AU. 40199 words. Found Family. Wholesome story.

Incandescent & Adolescent (Wonders Never Cease) by @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels - my sketchnote

She Loves Me AU. 1930s setting. Lots of letter writing. 18438 words. 

Ballet-Feerie by @oldshrewsburyian & @qqueenofhades - my sketchnote

Ballet AU. See above. 16799 words

Blood Sins - A #FlynnFriday Imagines Series (E-rated) by  @doctorliamsr, @timelesshonesttrailer & @ununpredictableme - my sketchnote

Vampire AU. Ongoing story that fascinates me to no end. Reading any snippit I can get my hands on. Garcia/Lorena/Lucy & Jiya/Rufus relationships. The E-rated parts are clearly marked and can be skipped if it’s not your cup of tea. Currently at 47403 words.

The Assassin’s Holiday by @secretnerdprincess - my sketchnote

Murdervision. Assassin AU. Got me giggling all the way through. 12224 words. Rated mature.

Amehrana by Redgold (@timelesshonesttrailer) - my sketchnote

Food Truck AU. Found family. Wholesome. Mature people. Lorena is awesome.  32589 words.

Lorena Lives

Rise Like a Reckoning by @amandamonroe - my sketchnote

Author’s summary: ‘"Lorena Flynn Has a Chance" Ex-CIA agent Lorena Flynn is back. She's got her daughter, her husband, and the woman who saved their lives years ago. She's taking command of the bunker and taking Rittenhouse down.’ Lorena/Garcia/Lucy hinted at towards the end. 6483 words.

Blood Sins - A #FlynnFriday Imagines Series (E-rated) by  @doctorliamsr, @timelesshonesttrailer & @ununpredictableme - my sketchnote

See above. Also: Iris lives!

Amehrana by Redgold (@timelesshonesttrailer) - my sketchnote

See above. Yes, I’m recommending this twice. :-)

Due to the nature of the show, there are not many stories in which Lorena lives. I particularly like the Lorena focused stories that RedGold, @sallyexactly, @omnicat​ & @amandamonroe​ write. Lorena & Iris deserved better and these stories bring depth, humanity and grace to Lorena & her choices. I reread them frequently and recommend you do the same. These authors are amazing.

Recovery & Healing

To Find a Home by @misscrazyfangirl321 - my sketchnote 

Rufus & Jiya & Garcia friendship. Extending grace. 4529 words.

A Butterfly Garden by @vita-s-west - my sketchnote

Post-Rittenhouse defeat. Slow recovery. Especially wholesome to read in these pandemic times. There’s now a sequel too!  3323 words. 

Nisam Sam by @thealocksly - my sketchnote

Lucy’s processing her time in Rittenhouse & Garcia holds space for her. Soft & dark & visceral. 1225 words.

Q&A by @somekindofflowergirl - my sketchnote

Author’s summary: “Lucy and Flynn develop a routine during their nighttime chats. She's allowed one loaded question and he's allowed one loaded apology.” 22176 words

The Road Ode by @sallyexactly - my sketchnote

See above. This roadtrip fic inspired my own roadtrip where we found ourselves in Friedrichshafen, Germany and the Zeppelin museum there were there was a whole exposition on the Hindenburg. Felt very serendipidous.

Honorable mentions (especially in these pandemic times):

Disease Protocols for Time Travellers by hjea (594  words)

Also, I’d like to give a shoutout to @battleshipgarcy​ for their fan archive sites & meta posts with screenshots of the journal & all the meta content. I love seeing all those small details highlighted! (Plus: their Maria Thompkins in their story The Road Less Traveled intrigues me to no end!)

Other Fandoms

Hunger Games - A Standing Engagement (E-rated) by @bettsfic - my sketchnote. 

Annie & Finnick AU within Hunger Games world. 56760 words. The Food Wars are so very appropriate in the Hunger Games world. It’s fascinating how well betts incorporates exisiting Hunger Games context into this story: this feels like it could have happened.

Temeraire - The Diplomat’s Dragon by indecisive_lotus - my sketchnote

Ongoing story. Post-canon. I love Churki & Hammond together & how Hammond especially gets out-manouvered. 20730 words.

White Collar - In Your Wildest Dreams by sahiya - my sketchnote

Post-canon. Sara Ellis focused. Author’s summary ”This was what grief did to you, Sara knew. It played tricks on your mind. But if it wasn’t Neal, then who could it be? Who else would send her an anonymous packet detailing all the ways someone could knock over the Louvre?” 14289 words.

White Collar - I’ve been bingereading the stories by Sholio. Especially the stories focused on Diana Barrigan. They are a delight. Breakout is especially bad-ass Diana (in heels nonetheless!)

I started this blog to show my appreciation of those wonderful fanfic stories that have entertained me endlessly and engage with these amazing artists (and other people in fandom who share my enthusiasm!) This recommendation list is obviously incomplete and I welcome additions & conversations! 

When I finished watching White Collar, I dove straight into the rabbithole that is A03 & fanfiction, and I was fortunate enough to stumble on this gem.

In Your Wildest Dreams by sahiya

This was what grief did to you, Sara knew. It played tricks on your mind. But if it wasn’t Neal, then who could it be? Who else would send her an anonymous packet detailing all the ways someone could knock over the Louvre?

This story picks up the threads the series leaves open & weaves them together beautifully. It opens with Neal in Paris casing the Louvre because he's bored out of his mind as a gentleman of leasure & he's starkly lonely even when he recognises the unavoidability of it all. Sara receives a mysterious package on her home address and Sterling-Bosch assigns her to track down the sender.

There's a realness to this story & I was struck by how in-character it felt. It's introspective and evocative. Our beloved characters do not shy away from their emotions and hard conversations, and they display a maturity that is wonderful to read.

The story feels poignant, melancholic & yet wonderfully fresh. It's my new favourite headcanon of what happened after the series ended.

(And I absolutely love the magic that is Archive of Our Own that allows me to find these stories years later. I remember the time before AO3 was imagined and still remember stories that I can never read again. The Archive is marvelous and I am grateful I found it especially during these trying times.)

I love white collar. perfect show. sometimes a family is the one good hetero couple, their ex-con conman son/best friend, and a weird eccentric uncle

started watching white collar because the venn diagram of the white collar and leverage fandoms appears to be a circle and you know what. yeah. i get it now.

A very Neal Caffrey New York

I have a feeling this post may also get me into white collar, I’m watching episode one right now

It just hit me that Peter is like the boss of a whole division of White Collar. Imagine you're an FBI agent and your boss has a pet conman who he breaks the law for and is constantly worrying over and spying on and they go to each others houses at odd hours. There's def a betting pool about them fucking

okay this is very important to me and probably me only but peter burke from white collar constantly gets referred to as agent burke which makes sense. but also it just gives me crazy flashbacks to state v dlp/poe cameron mock trial case because of the p witness agent shar burke and this is very funny. to me.

and they both do art crime white collar crime stuff.

Pfffff

A fucking break?

Wasn’t expecting to stumble upon the White Collar fandom today but I am not complaining

peter burke is so funny bc he’s a completely normal guy except he’s been obsessed with two people to a point of stalking (his wife and the conman he chased for years) but it’s fine bc they’re just as obsessed with him 😭???

What makes White Collar hold up so much better than other police procedurals:

It was part of the "pretty happy shows with gorgeous ensemble casts and a charismatic weird guy" USA network era but it somehow used that to be about stuff that is so REAL

What is justice? Is our system fair? Can you be a criminal and still be a good man? Can you be a good man and still work for the system?

The bad guys are rich assholes, and people defrauding families out of their homes, and unethical pharmaceutical companies. People manipulating energy supply out of greed resulting in blackouts which are showing *harming a dog,* aka how to show something is monstrous in a pg show written by a white person. Class exists in this universe in more ways than having a cardboard concept of a "rich guy."

The bad guys include police, FBI agents, prison staff, judges, senators. Those people cause real harm, obstruct justice, plant evidence, kill people. It's shown how the system protects them and harms regular people.

The harm that causes the main character to go from wanting to be part of the system, to subverting and working against it, is him finding out about an act of police corruption, brutality, and murder--and what's more, that if he became a cop, that's what he could become.

The harm that causes the main character to be outside the white picket fence is that the system failed his family after that act. What happened to Neal's mom? Why did nobody besides Helen step in? They had to check in with US Marshals, did nobody notice this kid didn't have an adult fit to parent?

So Neal turns to found family. And let's be real, heavily polyamory coded found family at that. But he keeps chasing the idea of a girl who will be everything. But he's got all this attachment trauma so he never does. But because found family is real family, even the people who freaking played the characters are still connected a decade later

One thing White Collar gets absolutely right and very few other shows do, is that people React to guns.

The reaction varies, depending on their level of training/comfort with firearms, but there's no cool guy bravado* when someone pulls a gun, especially not from Neal. When he sees a gun he always always always reacts like things just got very serious, this is no longer fun and games.

And you know what? Yes please. It also ups the stakes for us when a character reacts to someone pulling a gun on them, and it's also highly realistic. I just really appreciate it that guns aren't a prop to signify "antagonist" but a weapon that should and does elicit fear.

* except for when Kate pulled a gun on Peter, and even then his reaction was warranted.

Neal Caffrey: ✨ arts & crafts ✨

105 “The Portrait”

211 “Forging Bonds”

301 “On Guard”

310 “Countdown”

415 “The Original”

501 “At What Price”

BONUS:

EXTRA BONUS:

White collar headcanon:

Neal's aroace. He still does everything like normal, but no relationships. Like, the characters could still be friends, but no romance.

i miss when you could turn on usanetwork in the summer and see a guy and his neurodivergent ““best buddy”” solve a case together in a way that implies they are not only codependent but each knows the other better than anyone else in the world ever will or could

Henley Monday -

Some Mondays you're a little sluggish after a nice, relaxing weekend. Some Mondays you wish that the weekend could be one day longer. Some Mondays you wish you had never tried a thing called white whiskey which might as well be called "Moonshine - Don't drink this unless you're a drifter from the 1930s or a Swanson".

However you're feeling today, let these pictures of hunkety-hunk Matt Bomer doing manly things sooth you. Look at him carry that shovel, gazing so thoughtfully, probably going to go rescue a horse in danger. And then he shows off the henley's utility by doing some woodwork on a piece of reclaimed pine.

What a treasure.

Lost White Collar Jessica Elk Grove CA

Lost White Collar Jessica Elk Grove CA

I’ve been watching Supernatural recently and considering when supernatural was filmed it has amazing camera quality. Compare season one of Supernatural to season one of Doctor Who (which were filmed in the same year) Supernatural has way better camera quality. Like on face ups you can see each and every pore on the skin. It’s crazy! Same thing with season two. I mean season two of Doctor Who got better camera quality but Supernatural’s camera quality was still better. Also White Collar and Merlin were filmed in 2009 and Supernatural season one (which was filmed in 2005) still has better camera quality even after 4 years!Also the special effects are insane. Like you compare the special effects (sfx) in supernatural to the special effects in other popular shows that came out at around the same time and Supernaturals sfx look way more advanced and realistic.The only other show that I can think of that matched this level of realism in its sfx is Harry Potter. It is that insane.

i can't post next gif as usual, so let it be