Cuzosu

If I read it and enjoyed anything about it, if anything stood out to me, I like to leave reviews. Sometimes I run out of time and forget what I've read, but as a general rule, if I could stand it long enough to read it and it made me smile or laugh or think, then I review. However, I have run into the occasional story that is just...blah. And by 'blah' I mean bland like tofu. (Though in my case it's more like the reputation of tofu, no real flavor, because to my taste buds, tofu tastes bad, and 'bad' probably counts as having flavor.) Honestly, I probably review more here and on AO3, where reviews are pretty rare, than I ever have on FFnet, and that's because of that rarity. If I feel a story deserves praise that hasn't been said, I want to give my two cents. It doesn't hurt me and it shouldn't hurt the author (though some people are way too sensitive about their works), so why not? But no, Raymy, I don't think we (anyone who's responded to this thread, at least) have this compulsion to review that you speak of. Not to the degree you do, it seems. I don't because, in the first place, I can't read anything that doesn't interest me, and in the second, I was raised with an emphasis on, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all." The second is very well ingrained in me...maybe too well. There again, I know it makes a review easier to read if there's compliments on something thrown in there with the constructive criticism, so....

The comment about the dash is particularly helpful, thank you. I should probably check out a punctuation guideline again myself, just...not today. Today's busy enough, and we've company for the next couple days. The ellipses...I try not to use them like that, but I was tired when I left this post and my punctuation and sentence structure appears to have gone down the drain. *eyes previous post* As to your third point, the non-sentence, well, my teachers made it a habit, for those of us who were good at writing and liked it, to say, "It's okay to throw in a non-sentence every now and then for emphasis. Not often, but once in a while." Splices...in the case of two whole sentences, I was taught to use semi-colons. Probably because my classmates tended to go comma-crazy and our teachers got sick of it, but it's how I was taught. And...yes. If it bothers you, you could always ask the admins to lock the thread so no more posts can be added. I might, in your place, and I'm sorry, I'm rambling again. I'm tired and hungry and...not looking forward to coming home smelling like cigarette smoke. *makes face* Trying to distract myself isn't working.

I mostly have problems with people who either misuse punctuation (when it's so easy to find online guides that have examples) and people who maul grammar horribly. (Drives me crazy when people use the wrong your/you're, there/they're/their, etc. I don't know about other people, but my teachers went over the difference between those from pretty much the time I started school clear into high school. If you don't know the difference after that long, you weren't paying attention. Even my German teacher went over it. ...he got pretty snarly about it, too, which had half the class grumbling and the other half of us giving significant shut up looks to our louder classmates.) I can understand people not knowing when/how exactly to use, for example, semi-colons. The more rare and professional level punctuation. That's fine. They can ask, or look it up, or just not use them. And when they get those words that sound the same but have different meanings, that's where a good beta or a dictionary would come in rather handy. My pet peeve (in this category) is that so many people either don't care or are just flat rude to you when you tell them, hey, this isn't perfect; here's a way you could improve it. Gee, people, sorry you're imperfect like the rest of us. Get over yourself, drop the attitude, and be thankful we care enough to help and/or give pointers. I don't leave reviews with suggestions and pointers and constructive criticism for myself; I do it for you. So you can be better, so you can improve, so you can get even more readers and reviews. Isn't that what every writer wants? There is one lady on FFnet right now who's an artist, draws as part of a group for manga, and she has admitted to me that she's not good with English and she's not really looking to improve right now, or to find a beta, because she's writing this story for fun, when she's stressed, because it's a plot she's had developing in her head for a long time and she wants to get it out there, shared. It's a little difficult sometimes to figure out what she means, but usually it's pretty easily understandable by the end of a chapter. She's so swamped with work most of the time that she doesn't even have the energy to write, so in order for her to post, she doesn't really edit except as she goes along. Normally, the grammar (or lack thereof) would bother me, but. She doesn't have run-on sentences almost ever. She's very clear with her phrasing as to who and what she's talking about. And the plot is wonderful and her characterization is great. It's probably the only story where that number of mistakes doesn't bother me (probably in part because most of them aren't the your/you're their/there/they're mix-ups that annoy me to no end).

I...can't manage to review everything I read. I do review a majority of what I read, simply because I know how much of an impact feedback can give. If it starts a conversation, great. If it inspires the writer, even better. But even if it just tells the author that, hey, this was awesome and this is what really got to me...it's served its purpose. There are, as mentioned above, times when I just can't think of anything good to say, at which point I just don't review. And sometimes I'm in such a bad mood that I don't review unless a story is epic awesome, because without such an impact on me, I'd be mean where it's not deserved. If I think a writer could use some help or guidance with anything, I'll point it out and suggest either a beta or something to look into for self-help. Probably what turns me off reviewing a story the most is unrealistic emotions. *shakes head* I just...can't do that. I'm big on realistic emotions, so if the emotions don't fit the character (and world, because sometimes there are biological reasons that have to do with the world, for whatever emotion), then it throws me off. Usually so badly that I just can't stand to keep reading, often badly enough that I can't even stand to think about it long enough to review. But for the most part, if I start into a story, I review it.

Not guilty. Ever found a game that you could no amount of money could make you give up playing? For me, this is Final Fantasy VII...at least, it was the first one I discovered that I can't give up. There's not enough money in the world to make me give it up. This...is kind of sad, considering. But it just goes to show: I love plot, especially good plot, and witty characters.

Not guilty, though I've heard they can be tasty if you cook them right. Ever had a dog walk you, instead of you walking the dog? (My first blue heeler was a real pain in this regard, but then he usually didn't even wear a collar, much less a leash, so I figure it wasn't his fault.)

I...have mood ring eyes. The only explanation I can think of for why I have mood ring eyes is genetics, and even then it doesn't entirely make sense because presumably someone in my family would have it to a greater or lesser degree as well...right? And the closest are my dad, grandfather, and one of the twins (maybe also the youngest brother, but if so I don't recall seeing it yet), whose eyes merely change shades. Green-gray, blue-gray, gray.... Their eyes change very little compared to mine. So. These mood ring eyes of mine. Apparently they scare some people (and some people think it's neat, but they're fairly few and far between, I've found). And I'm not quite sure why. Silver...means I'm spacing out, in a trance, or thinking about something fairly hard. I was walking from a class to lunch with a friend one year, and he, with his bright bright blue eyes, was creeped out because my eyes turned foggy silver. It probably isn't very nice of me that I found it amusing...but I did. Blue...means I'm calm, content, happy, or feel either like I'm at home or otherwise where I need to be. Gray...the darker it is, the more I've set my mind to something. The more I'll hold whatever line I've drawn. It's a measure of my will, shown in color for all the world to see. (Well, maybe not so much in color...but you know what I mean. ) Yellow...I have this ring of wild wolf yellow that circles my pupil (similar to the darker ring that circles the iris, though the latter is always gray or blue). Wild is, I feel, the appropriate word choice because the mood this yellow signifies is feral. Literally speaking, it's my inner berserker wanting out. When I'm in a good mood, it can be barely visible.... But when I get angry, the circle widens and darkens, and it can turn from wolf yellow into a dark, dark brown...or into black. Brown...means I'm angry and barely holding my temper in check. I've only had verbal confirmation of this twice, but both times I was close to fully losing it and going berserk and trying to kill people, so it's a color I prefer my eyes not to be. I've had people try to tell me (my dad included) that these anger issues were something I should work on, but the thing most people don't understand (again, my dad included) is that I've been working on these issues my whole life. I spent nine years with his wife making that task harder than it should have been, and he didn't exactly help with that. My mom told me when I was young about her own issues with the berserker problem, and my grandma on the other side had similar problems but more toned down...and I'm reasonably sure the male bloodlines contributed some blood-lust of their own. So I knew I'd have to work on it, and keep it controlled...and still, I've fully berserked once and half-berserked another time, and the only reason my dad's wife is still alive is because when I berserked I literally could not move. Thankfully for her, I managed to regain control before I could move again. (She, of course, doesn't realize how lucky she is.) Black...means I've fully berserked. The odd symetry in this is that, speaking from experience gained when I berserked that time and couldn't move, what I feel when this happens (and see) is black waves rolling me under, like I'm on a sea shore and went out too far. If I don't keep my head up, I'm berserk and out of control. I didn't know anything from my body except the pain and lack of air, but that's normal to feel when you've just sustained rib damage. *shrug* Well, I've got enough self-control that I've only lost it twice in nearly two and a half decades. Not bad, I think, all things considered. Green...this is the one I posted this to rant about. It can mean I'm feeling mischievous, or horny, or both. And, while the mood-ring-eyes thing is neat most of the time because it's really, really obvious when I'm getting angry...there are (admittedly few and far between) times when I'm not up for play that I do feel mischievous, and when my bf tries to play with me then, it pisses me off. I don't...I don't want to expect more than is realistic from him, but sometimes I wish he could at least ask before he started trying to play with me! (Of course, watch, the second he did, I'd complain that he was taking too long when I wanted to play. I feel hypocritical about that.) My eyes have also been seen (so I'm told by friends who have seen me in a number of moods over the years, and by my bf) orange, red, and purple.... A light purple, the color of Cheza's eyes from Wolf's Rain.... I have no idea what moods those colors signify, but still. Strange, strange eyes. The only color that is just one color in and of itself which has never been seen in my eyes is pink. (Except when I had pink eye, but that's not color changing, that's illness. )

Guilty. Apparently I'm such a furnace that the pole doesn't like my tongue. Have you ever had perverted conversations with your grandparents? (I...have. In some ways I was very proud of them - most grandparents I've seen are nowhere near so open. In other ways, I was...slightly horrified. Who wants to have sex life conversations with their grandparents? But for all my grandmother's nosiness where my sex life is involved, it's nice to not have to rein in my perverted side around them. My dad, on the other hand...talk about awkward. My mother, well, I can either laugh at her reactions or apologize for being crass, but every now and then she'll top everyone in the room with an insult you never see coming, at which point we pretty much die laughing.)

Not guilty; with my luck, I'd have gotten my best friend's dad, and then I'd hear it from her family and mine. Ever changed your hair style - length especially - simply because you were bored? (Not high, not drunk, just bored.) (I'm strange; my sister is my hair stylist, and for the last...year and a half? Two years?...my hair's been short, mostly by necessity because I'm a furnace that for some reason doesn't turn off. Anyway, I got bored and decided to grow out the hair on one side of my head...only one side...so I can braid the underside...just to see how it works for me. My sister liking to use my head for her strange hair cutting experiments, she quite happily agreed, since she's never seen anyone do it either. Of course, it would be hard to tell if anyone was using such a hairstyle, simply because the upper, outer layers of hair would be covering the braid, but....)

Sealed With A Naughty Kiss (I've been reading Terry Pratchett's "Going Postal" to my bf; SWALK is a fairly common acronym in that book.) U N C O N D I T I O N A L

Ceasefire Enables Lucky Entrepreneur's (Brazen) Rush Into Tons: Yeeessss! Because I couldn't quite tell if you'd meant to have a B in there or not. L I G A M E N T

Witty Outcast Needs Drumroll Encore; Rioters Lose Another National Do (Don't ask where that came from, because I'm not entirely sure either.) Q U E S T I O N I N G

I did a Google search the other day, found this site: http://www.grammarbo...glish_rules.asp Deals with punctuation and grammar, though the pop-ups can be annoying.

You can also do an online search for "punctuation rules" to find out when to use which punctuation marks. I just did a Google search to see if there was a site that would work, and the first link that showed up had links for different punctuation marks, for grammar, for sentence structure, and examples listed under each of the various rules I saw. I did get a pop-up ad when I got to the site, but the site itself was http://www.grammarbook.com/english_rules.asp

Semi-colons, broadly speaking, are used in lists (usually when there are commas also involved, to show what is actually in the list and what is merely a comment) and to separate complete sentences where you don't want the longer pause a period would denote. For example, using a random line from a Laurell K. Hamilton novel, "Neither good nor evil conquers all, but evil cheats more." You could change it, using a semi-colon, into: "Neither good nor evil conquers all; evil cheats more, that's all." Of course you could mess more with the phrasing if you wished, but do you see what I mean? And as pittwitch pointed out, commas are used to show that you're talking to somebody instead of about them.

"It's a Heartache" Lorrie Morgan

Nine: Thank you. So much. I wasn't expecting much in the way of reviews yet, if at all (I can be bad about that, too), and here you've given me one in less than twelve hours! Yes, Caimus is adorable, isn't he? I find myself giggling a lot when writing his antics. The Sire amuses me as well - I think he maybe takes his responsibilities a little too seriously, but then he is a vampire, and to him (at this point) Caimus is one of his responsibilities, someone he's supposed to look out for and protect. Not to mention that he wants Caimus raised in ways that are much more vampire than Were, which obviously isn't always going to work like he wants it to. Oops. Heheh. Jaden is very fun to write - he's got rough edges, acts like a rogue at random times, and even when he's not feeling up to it he will do his best for others. The way you see him right now (and will for a while in future) is going to be a bit more...snarly? Easily riled?...than his norm, simply because he's still got some emotional wounds from the war. I'll delve into that later, no worries. I'm glad the world interests you! I'm trying to make it to where it makes sense to me and draws in readers, and sometimes that's difficult. As for where the story starts - I didn't want to just jump into teenage years, and the Sire really wanted a say in Caimus' upbringing. (Yes, my characters inflict themselves on me with migraine-level insistence when they really get going. This happens in fan fiction too.) Anyway, I'll try to have more out soon! Feel free to pester me if I take too long! Is: Thank you! I'm glad to see Caimus is so popular - after all, shouldn't the innocent young characters be adored? I'm definitely intending to continue this, and if I take too long you're more than welcome to pester me about it. dazedandconfused: Thank you! I'm rather fond of shapeshifter/were stories myself, and then with the challenge of vampires thrown in - I couldn't resist. I think this one's stolen a place in my heart, and I've barely started. Caimus is a neat protagonist, isn't he just? A mute little furball to start with, but he will grow up. And Jaden - ha! He's fun, though he's got an edge of darkness, sadness, to him, too. As for the Sire, well, I'm not necessarily the biggest fan of vampires - this must be a family trait, since my sister's the same - but I think when I finish the series I'll still like him, so I hope I'm doing something right with him. I'll aim for regular updates, then - but if I take too long, come pester me. I don't mind. Sometimes it even helps. SneakySpy: Glad it's roused your curiosity. I have every intention of writing more, so if I take too long let me know.

"High Lonesome" in my pants. (Singer: Jedd Hughes)

"Misty Mountains" Richard Armitage and the Dwarf Cast The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Saw the movie today (finally got tired of waiting for my sis to have the money to join us) and it's awesome. I'm so glad Peter Jackson was kept on as director.

Enchantress Arcane Reveals Truth Humorously, Questions Umpire Arcanus' Killer Ethics (or obvious lack thereof). P L E T H O R A

"Hard Earned Country Livin'"...in my pants. ...*shrug* Could be worse. Earlier I was listening to Nickelback's "Midnight Queen".... I don't have anything against homosexuals, transgenders or anything, but that "Queen" bit...yeah, NO. I wouldn't tolerate a queen-type person, male or female, in my pants. Just not that willing to put up with attitudes, however good the playtime is.

"Strange" Reba McEntire

Consent Or Not; Violating Eyes Recall Trauma (Uhh...I don't know if that one's from my headache or sleep deprivation.... Bf woke me up before my body was ready.) T E X T I L E