Which fic can we safely say is a spuffy classic? Which fic is a must read that ur not a spuffy fan unless you've read it?

I'd say "Been Here Too Few Years" by Addie Logan if we are talking AUs. That's an epic.

The Game Series by Sabershadowkat. Actually, I'd say anything by Sabershadowkat.

Though it's not finished, "Cast Away" by RipeWickedPlum and "Bloody Soul" by Kallysten.  But damn, are there so many kick ass fics out there...

i agree castaway was a classic sadly never finished...god i would kill for it to be finished

Ooh, and though it's fantasy "In the Dark with You" by Moxie.

And "Heart Don't Lie" by Nauti. Brilliant, and is practically finished.

"Superstar Revamped" by Kantayra.  Okay, done now...

One fic? Gah...I can't do ONE, but here are some that I think are absolute must reads for any Spuffy fan:-

Journeys by Mary

The Butterfly Effect & Future Imperfect by Cousinjean

The Blood Series by Nan Dibble

Barb C's series: A Raising in the Sun, Necessary Evils and Parliament of Monsters

Spike's Will be Done series by TalesofSpike

Legions of True Hearts by Eurydice

My Life Closed Twice by Anaross

I'd say anything by Eurydice. I totally fangirl her as an author. Once I found her site, I read through everything there all in a row....with little sleep, LOL. 

Moxie was a classic for the older days. Bitten's work was awesome, too.

Oh! And Spikealicious' Spuffy stuff!

Journeys by Mary

The Bittersweet Series by Herself

Anything that Holly writes

Anything that DreamsofSpike writes

Eurydice is incredible

Lizerrbeathan's "Adieu, A Dew, I Do" is excellent!

Here's the site where I found it: http://www.lizerrrbeathan.com/LizerrrbeathanFanfic.html

 Anything by enigmaticblue.

Enigmaticblue, Holly, Cousinjean - oh, yes, I agree, they're brilliant!

Personally, I'd add Helga von Nutwimple (you can find her on FF.net), my very favourite writer, who wrote some great stuff. Unfortunatelly, I don't think she finished any of her longer fics. Despite that, I'd count "As Romans Do" a classic. Oh, and Shadowlass's "Possession", too.

Two of the fics that got me hooked on Spuffy was Harbringers of Beatrice by Holly as well as Blood Bound and Trusting You by DreamsofSpike. So those three would be my all time classics.

Holly - Harbingers of Beatrice and Sang et Ivoire

Eurydice - Promise of Frost and By Rook or By Crook , Black Satin Voices , Charms of the Clarion

Alsow read stuff by Kallysten and Kantayra and really everything by Eurydice and Moxie of course cant forget Moxie! and likely ill keep on remembering the greats and keep on editing this post

A lot of the greats have been mentioned here already, but I have a few more to add to the list.

One of my all time favorite Spuffy fics is by Kindred called Detour. She also did the fantastically written, insightful and erotic two-part series, No Vacany and Open All Night.

A pretty classic Kantayra story is Double-Spiked, which features two Spike's - good and evil - and season 6 Buffy. Porny hijinks ensue!

Europanya's Shards and A Dying Dream were also two incredible fics from a few years ago.

Check out anything by Devil Piglet and Rabid, too. Some choice fics are The Sweet Spot and Still Life in Melon and Honey.

Annapurna's unfinished, but brilliant WIP, Marking Time.

*teary eyes* Oh, how I loved these.

There have been some wonderful fics suggested on here. There have also been some that make me scratch my head and go "huh?".  Even allowing for differences in taste, I think when someone asks for classic fics to rec to non Spuffy addicts, there are certain things you need to look for.

If you're looking for "classics", as in the fics that set the standard for Spuffy fan fic, then you've got to go with the oldies, but extremely goodies. To me, if someone says "classic", then I think of something that has been around long enough to stand the test of time, something that has been acknowledged for years as the gold standard for fan fic.  I think most of these fics and/or authors have already been mentioned and all I can do is say "Amen!"

If you're looking for stories that might cause someone to be interested enough to start reading more, then you want to go with stories that are very well-written, have consistent and good characterizations, and present the world of BtVS in a way that makes the reader want to learn more about it.

Oddly enough, I would say that the fics that fit the "classics" mold, also fill that bill.  I cannot imagine anyone reading Journeys, or the Blood Ties Series, or any of the many other amazing stories set in wonderfully realized Sunnydales and not wanting to know and read more about these characters.  

It is, however, probably safe to mention specific authors who are so consistently good that reading almost anything by them is likely to inspire a need to read more.  Eurydice, Anaross, Mary, BarbC, (Nan Dibble, God rest her soul), CousinJean, Lizzerrbeathan - I could go on and on.  These are the writers who set the standard for the rest of us.  Granted, individual stories can vary in their power and appeal, but probably not enough to scare someone away. After all, one reader's favorite fic by a given author may well be someone else's least favorite, but they will still both think that author is awesome. :)

Okay, I'm just going to go by memory here:

Affinity by Ginmar

Journeys Series by Mary

Spike's Will Be Done Series by TalesofSpike

Bloody Soul Series by Kallysten

There are ones listed here that I've heard a must-reads, and I have them on my to read list, but I haven't had the chance yet.  There are more, but my dinner's ready! :-)

Where can I find Lizerbethan's work?  I'm fairly certain I've never seen or read any of it...

 http://www.lizerrrbeathan.com/LizerrrbeathanFanfic.html

Can't believe no one said Older by Nauti.   =)

thanks Enisy ;)

Classic Spuffy? I have to agree with most things listed already here. In fact, I could so see Eurydice's Black Satin Voices and Charms of the Clarion filmed on the show, if Mutant Enemy had the money to film in New Orleans or Scotland.

More stories:

Enemy Incognito by Wynn

A Cricket in California by Elsa Frohman

Dream Girls, Blue Horizons, Balancing the Scales, Haunted, and The Seventh Slayer by Kantayra (Anything else by her is pretty good too.)

Darkest before Dawn by Nmissi

Heart's Filthy Lesson and Serious Moonlight by Mustang Sally and Rivka T (I recommend you stop there. The next two get really wierd and gross)

Green Card as well as Castaway by Ripe Wicked Plum

Love is Blind by Avalon

For the Dark by Sandra S. (So old I doubt you'll find it anywhere. It could be considered Proto-Spuffy since it was written after Season 2)

In Heat by Nautibitz

I keep thinking yes That is my favourite fic/Author then someone mentions another story or writer that has to go on my list. 

Herselfs "Bittersweets" series has to go on the list of classics.

For the dark  by Sanda S is available at Spike and Buffy Diaries for anyone interested.

Please link me to "For the Dark" if you can :P

The ones I'd list as classics have all been mentioned!  Journeys is responsible for setting me off on a frenzy of fanfic reading. 

But here are a few stories that haven't been mentioned that I find myself going back to.  So they are classics to me!

"Let Nothing You Dismay" by Constance, which I can't explain why I love without spoiling. 

"It's Got to be Perfect" by Speakers-to-Customers.  Buffy wishes for a perfect Spike and gets what she deserves, literally.  A bit of Buffy-bashing, but all nice and Spuffy.  And funny. 

"Innocence Found" and "Reclamation" by Spike's Heart.  Sweet. 

The first ten chapters of "Saving Grace" by Dreams of Spike were totally gripping, and the rest of the story unfolds nicely.  My favorite of hers.

Slaymesoftly's stuff is always fun, and I know that a lot of other great fics are escaping my brain at the moment.

http://www.bsdiaries.com/display.php?sID=020743&chID=1 

http://www.bsdiaries.com/display.php?sID=020743&chID=1 

Sorry the link above should be for The Fall of Dark (not very good at the forum/linky things). :sigh:

Thanks so much for the link ;)

And, here's one more, cause ya know, I can't help myself...

"When She Was Younger" by thewhispering- the first third is completely gripping as we see Buffy (in s4) with the mindset of 15 year old pre slaying Buffy.

"Angels in the Rain" by Mrs. Muir totally tugged at my heart strings, which is hard to do.

"Bring Me to Life" by Sweetie (I've only seen it at sinister-attraction) is an AH.  Buffy is blind, and Spike is supposed to murder her...but of course, lots and lots of things happen (and not necessarily funny hijinks- very emotional fic)

"Boomerang" by Shadowlass- one of the best shorts ever

and "All Our Yesterdays" by Evenstar

I have to agree that there are alot of great stories out there I got so many running through my head sometimes it is impossible to pick just one but the first stories I ever read were on www.the-sandlot.com  and now I am here but my top five authors would have to be Ripewickedplum Nautibitz sabershadowkat jackofspikes and mary perk

I've just gotta say thanks so much to all the people on here who mentioned my stories. You guys are incredible...I'm so...awed, to think that you think of my fics that highly.

I have to say, to me a classic fic is a fic that's stood the test of time, making a lasting impression on the fandom as a whole, and I have to also say that for me, I tend to remember specific authors rather than their individual fics, when I think of the writers who've made such a tremendous impact on the fandom.

For me, anything by Bloodshedbaby or Nautibitz, Herself, Eurydice...there are so many others, too, almost too many to name...and there are a lot of newer authors as well whose work i love...Constance, JackofSpikes, ClawofCat, Eowyn...again there are so many, this is just to name a few...I'd read pretty much anything by any of these writers :)

*hugs*

DoS

Well, I have been reading for about 2 years and can't read as much as I want due to work and RL but I can't even begin to list all the authors that have inspired and kept the love for Spike, with anyone, alive...Jackofspikes, Dreamsofspike, Hollydb, Eurydice, Kantayra, to name a few my tired brain can conjure up since I just got off a long nursing shift....

I want so much to read stuff by Kallysten since I keep hearing about her so could someone provide a link?  Pretty please?

I also love Mary's Journeys and I adore the Origin's stories by Niamh, surprised she wasn't mentioned...that is awesome as well.  What about Megan?  She is amazing as well.  I also love Bloodshedbaby's stories.

I am so glad this thread came up so I can find new authors to go after and read...so kudos to the one who brought this up...I thank you!

If I think of anymore...can I come back?  lol

You can read Kallysten's stuff here: http://fanfic.kallysten.net/menu.html.

Thanks Cereza, I will bookmark that site and download stories in case they disappear...lol

Do you know where to find Nan dibble stories as well?  With the website or link?  I have looked everywhere and maybe just missed it or something...again thanks so much...

Nan's stories are on All About Spike  http://www.allaboutspike.com/auth.html?au=247%20

Is CousinJean's work still available online? I can't find it anywhere.

Quite a few of  Cousinjean's fics can still be found online, yes.  I have links to a few on my Recs page

Here's a few more of cousinjean's fics here.  I'm sure someone else posted it on her behalf, though: http://buffy.adultfanfiction.net/authors.php?no=1296780562

and some more here: http://www.dark-solace.org/elysian/viewuser.php?uid=61

I keep seeing two other author's names, Moxie and Nmissi, and wonder if anyone has the links to their sites for me.  I am still looking thru all my bookmarked sites and will come back here to see if anyone answered.

More of my fave's are Slaymesoftly, Unbridled Brunette, The space between, and Mary Perk.  I have an unbelievable amount of stuff on my hard drive from so many authors that I haven't been able to finish and this forum introduced me to even more marvelous ones.  All of you so very nice, Thanks!

You can find moxie fics at sinister-attraction.org ;)

As far as I know, Nmissi doesn't have her own fic page. You can find Darkest before Dawn here

http://home.att.net/~lubakmetyk/crypt.htm#nmissi

as well as on Fanfiction.net. Which surprised me, because I thought they forbade NC17 stuff.

Be careful going into Sinister Attraction. The last time I entered the home page it loaded a trojan on my computer. I go in through the author index and avoid it, so far.  Look for the Moxie stuff on

 http://www.sinister-attraction.org/authors/m2.htm

You can get to any author by clicking on the letters on the index links.

Classics! I know this one!

DevilPiglet's Roundabout - Piglet is a freaking genius, on paper and in person.

Mr. Monkeybottoms' Spike Lips! Lips of Spike! and The Wacky Adventures of Spike and Buffybot. If you're into sexy comedy, Monkey is a must-read.

Laure Alexander's Divine Madness (one of the first fanfics I ever read, and sort of a bar-raiser for its time). And bonus, it's been recently completed. (Nice to know I'm not the only one taking five years to finish things.)

and finally, KJ Draft's Tooth and Nail. My favorite fill-in-the-blanks Smashed/Wrecked fic. Some seriously hot stuff.

Oh, and hey, thanks for the mentions. It's nice to be remembered. :)

So many wonderful stories - they thing is with so many different personal likes - maybe some parameters need to be set for The Classics - elements that help define what your Classics List. 
This is a very good project - especially with the amount of years and loss of so many sites -

Great News about Laure Alexander and the "complete" update