Kurahieiritr
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Posts posted by Kurahieiritr
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So when I see stories with very poor grammar and punctuation, bordering on chatspeak or textspeak or whatever these crazy kids call it these days... I question whether the author is telling the truth about being over the age of 18.
Seriously. Think about it a moment. Most of us have figured out by age 18 how to write, if not 100% correct, at least close enough to get by pretty well. The few exceptions I've found have been the kind of people that don't enjoy writing and wouldn't do it in their free time, or didn't have English as their first language. I don't think grammar is a lost art though, in fact, I think we're seeing a renewed interest in it by the number of grammar snobs that are cropping up. It's like the technologically literate are starting to push back against the illiterate that are infiltrating their domain. We went from using 1337 to set ourselves apart to using perfect grammar while online to set ourselves apart from the people that don't type as well as we do...
On websites other than this one, I just assume simple ignorance or not enough experience with typing, thereby making the person more likely to take shortcuts.
A: A very interesting hypothesis that I had never thought about when I crossed phone text shorthand variety fics. I always assumed that they were so absorbed in text messages from their phones in their real life that they had forgotten that there is a real language available to them. If they are underage, then they should not be on this site. Hope you have not just handed the clean up crew a new criteria for their minor hunting jobs. It would be a very depressing situation iof most of those text speak stories were written by underage brats.
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I may post a semi-raw chapter to give readers something to look at if I have not been posting much because of the real world situations that happen, but I replace such chapters as soon as is humanly possible with grammatically repaired versions. I tend to use human speak in dialog because people don't use proper grammar when they talk to each other as a rule. However, I am very strict with my own writing when it comes to all other elements.
To my thinking, grammar checking programs are the most important tool any writer can purchase. I have never had interest in cell phones or text message programs of that classification. On facebook, I am constantly lost when I run into text speak outside of the terms LOL, ROFL, WEG, and LMAO. I avoid text speak because I have never understood what was attractive about it. Laughter is one of my favorite things, so I do tend to abuse the above terms. Also, I loved the Weird Al song. Word Crimes made me laugh a lot so thanks for sharing that one @GeorgeGlass.
I have seen a number of text speak stories on various sites across the web. Because I do not know the lingo, I must back pedal to find a different story. In some respects, the lost art of grammar is a sad statement about how our society has become fixated on doing everything faster, and more efficiently to the point it no longer has any meaning at all. We are losing too much of what once made civilization great. Fast and gratuitous actions only seems to increase the pressure of consume more ideals that are sold constantly on the radio, and on televisions around the globe. Civilization is losing a lot of what made it special because of the lost art of grammar usage I believe.
- BronxWench and pittwitch
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Sounds like your governor is doing what they did here in Arizona a few years back. After the teachers in my state had to buy supplies, the students education went to shit out here. It might save on tax dollars, but your kids are going to be a whole lot dumber once this is implemented. Just telling you the actual long term truth since I watched it happen with my own eyes. My son graduated from high school two years after the regulation was added here. I have heard even worse from those who still have school aged kids that are barely getting anything at all from public schools now. The teachers claim they cannot teach because they cannot afford to make print outs for their students on their own dime. I'm sure that you will hear the same arguments within two years if you or your friends have children in public school.
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Very cute rant. Thanks for sharing. It sure made me chuckle.
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Thanks for all the insights shared. I think that this topic needs some kind of debate so that a common consensus gets reached. The hardest part of writing anything that involves Japanese anime or manga is finding a safe middle ground when caught in the middle of this kind of debate due to both sides making very specific demands on writers. Everything depends upon the readers input since they are the ones who come to read our stories. Like the Kenshin comments imply, some readers have very specific ideas about what is and is not permissible to substitute with English equivalents. I've had readers who are obsessed with correct address based upon certain social status. I have gotten screamed at a time or two by my readers if I don't have a san attached to certain character names inside the dialog. Such readers say I have to show the proper respect from the other character addressing the higher ranked person in those instances.
I originally wrote all my fanfics in straight, pure English, only to get yelled at for not using cannon character specific Japanese addresses and catch phrases that different characters favor in cannon shows and mangas. Example, one character always says Little brother and that ticks off half of my readers, while the original Japanese term "otouto" ticks off the other half. Same problem applies to "Aniki" versus "big brother" as another example. I cannot find any means to please both sides. I received messages with tons of add this Japanese word comments, so I revised the original Japanese free tales to add the demanded words into my stories. Once the words were added, I got screamed at over switching the words to remove the English equivalents I originally used.
So I guess my question is, "Where is the acceptable middle ground for a writer who has readers that seem quite passionate and polarized as pro and con about this subject of "must use" or "must not use Japanese" in fan fiction grounded story telling?"
I would love to know how best to balance the two sides of my readership on this subject. After receiving messages in my email from both sides, I do ponder the virtue of taking down my stories because of this specific subject matter.
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The manga my stories were based off is about fifteen years old so many in 2014 may not be too familiar with it. But I like it over other manga that is out today, Reviews for such an old series will be few and far between but that is okay. Since I like AU/OOC so much, some have noted that I have totally distorted the manga/anime. They are 100% correct. I also do not expect many views, reviews or comments of any kind.
On to another subject...
My biggest peeve is when someone asks me to look at the Naruto or Bleach story and then review it. Screw that, both series bore me to tears. Sorry people but no one writes on newer the newer series. Examples: Candy Boy, Ai Yori Aoshi, Maria-sama ga miteru or Strawberry Panic, etc. I have left many reviews for those stories on other sites because the subject was interesting and the writing was good. AND! The writer never asked for a review,
Maybe that is my stance, write an interesting and good story on a series that is newer and then I will leave a review.
THIS IS JUST A SUPPOSITION.
A: I can understand the pet peeve feeling of being asked to review stories that do not hold any active sparks of interest. It would be a very tedious task to read something you do not enjoy. I for one can be very finicky in my tastes so confine myself to the animes/mangas I actively enjoy. Still, I stopped giving reviews to anyone after a dose of nastiness received from other writers who demanded, begged, and wheedled me into reviewing their stories.
My rant has always been about people pushing for reviews and proving in the end that they are egomaniacs who only accept ego stroking attention instead of honesty. In the end, I am happier not reviewing anything now. I no longer suffer the headaches attached to people who lie about what they really want in the form of reviews. I also do not worry about whether or not anyone reads my work either. My stories are in a very small niche so not very many people even know the show exists which is fine with me. I decided it no longer matters to me whether or not new people take an interest in things I write. My core group of fans like my stories enough to read them, and I have made my peace with the situation that led to this rant in the first place.
On a brighter note, I am taking a renewed interest in different forms of feedback as I find time to actually write anything at all. Email works great for sharing chapters, and getting feedback from like minded, honest individuals. I may only get a chapter written every few months, but hey, the two people I ship the chapters to, always give me real feedback, and show me the grammar and other failings so by the time I can post a single chapter between bouts of real world chaos, I know it is a decent chapter now.
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Any fanfiction is allowed...it doesnt matter. I know that many readers/writers have different pairings and shows they like so it doesnt matter. But you must still be willing to read other people stories even if you dont like the show or pairing. Personally for me I have a very very wide range of shows and pairings that Iike. So its open to all types of fanfics and pairings. Hope i cleared it up for you.
Are you interested in joining?
A: I am always interested in improving my writing level as writing has long been my life blood. I have a lull in real world chaos so wish to get back into editing and improving a couple of stories I had to put on hold while dealing with serious family/friend issues for the bulk of this year. It would be a great way to motivate me into getting back into the habit of writing, so I am interested now that I know there will not be any curtails on which fandoms are allowed. I have no problem reading unfamiliar shows and pairings so long as I know the materials I am reading are written by people who like myself wish to improve their work for the enjoyment of others. Such a group is precisely the type of group I would enjoy working with to be honest. Finding a beta is very difficult when you write an obscure fan fiction realm, and ignore the rabidly followed core group yaoi pairing I have found.
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Will there be specific fan fiction canons upon which your group will focus? Or will your group have an any show goes variety of fan fiction allowance? I am curious because many writing groups have a tendency to insist on the popular pair and specific shows when it pertains to fan fiction. Therefore, I hope you will provide a clarification on this subject. If you have a genuine full spectrum of fan fictions allowed, instead of only accepting a certain range of shows, it would be helpful to know in advance.
Thanks for your time in answering this question.
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An interesting question that I think holds a number of possibilities. Human nature looks at actions and ways of phrasing things as defining most cases of creepiness. A very normal looking person on the outside is charged with being creepy most often because of combinations of actions and ways of speaking that are deemed by the rest of us as being uncomfortable and or dangerous to us as fellow human beings. A creepy scene in a movie often contain a specific character's actions and speech patterns which are focused upon raising one's hackles as the scene is watched. Atmosphere does have a contribution to make, along side of the reactions of others.
A truly nightmarish character must be shown through their thoughts, words, and actions as a complete individual. Often the creepy character is shown through the lens of these multiple levels of existence in such a way that it screams how crazy and/or vicious the character is at their core. It is possible to show flashes of the character's past that helped to shape them into such an unacceptable and inhuman person. Religion and historic abuse are often among the devises used to portray how a person could become so abnormal and outside of normal civilized structures of interaction.
Read the masters of story telling who excel at promoting creepiness and you will find a number of very well written nightmare individuals, many of whom are mentally warped into monsters who can no longer control their instinctual behaviors.. Among my personal favorite creepy stories are some that were written by Edgar Allen Poe. If you have ever read his complete works of Poe you have already seen how he uses the character's thoughts, words, and actions to promote the validity of psychosis. He makes the creep factor lively through combinations of all of the above elements which alert the reader from the first paragraph that the character is unhinged, while believing that they alone are sane. Such characters spend time harping upon and degrading the ways of truly sane and rational people's views in many cases. Therefore, if you want to master a truly creepy, monstrous clown character, read some of Edgar Allen Poe's stories, not his poetry, and you will begin to see how most masters of creepy writing create their timeless creep factors.
Hope that helps you out a bit. Good luck with your character development.
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I would be interested in seeing this. I feel like there's three metrics to care about: page views, which counts how many people clicked on the story. Readers, or the people that not only clicked, but kept reading. And reviews, which are people that clicked, read, and then had an opinion they thought worth typing up. The last one is the hardest to get, I feel, as commentary takes a bit of an effort and some people may enjoy a story but feel they have nothing to contribute in the terms of a review. Having that in-between stat to tell if it's being read or not would be lovely.
And does anyone feel that the codes are more important than the story description...? Because I sacrificed codes in favor of more text about the story and I don't think it's working.
A: I think the idea of being able to favorite stories and authors is a nice addition to the way AFF is run. It would clear up a few things like the vote down system that happens to some people that have posted stories here and upset someone else for whatever odd reason. Removing the star system would make it harder for the petty to function as problematic for people they get upset with also. They cannot undo another user's account after all. Am looking forward to seeing the new system once it gets launched. I can only hope there is an announcement about it once it gets launched since my schedule has been so hectic. i would hate to miss learning how it works once it is incorporated.
Green Tea: I tend to tag a story description with the most important codes plus a note (codes inside) to make clear i have not listed all codes in the summary that shows. It is easier to add a lot of codes in the author note on the very first page for first chapter without causing problems. The most important codes are about really odd fetishes and things like MPreg which can offend some people so those do belong in the viewed mini summary to prevent the readers from screaming foul later. Still, many codes can be reserved for first chapter right before starting the story I have discovered. If I wind up with a twist i did not expect to have while writing a story, I add the new code tag once the situation requires it at the beginning of the chapter, and will often revise the first chapter to reflect the newest added code asap. So you can work around the large number of codes sometimes required, and have a story summary by altering where the bulk of tags get placed if you start with an author note before you start telling the story inside of page 1 by using this kind of system. It is also okay with the administration so long as you do have codes listed in the story itself.
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Children are innocent until experience strips that innocence away. The sheet would start out only partially filled when at 4 years old, but would get more answers added to the 1st one as the character matures. A 4 year old won't normally have opinions about sexuality unless s/he gets molested in example. Fill in as you go. The sheets on psychology would also evolve and change as the child grows up too. Experiences make all the difference in how a character evolves after all. So I am thinking the psychology and opinions version would be revised at least once, while somethings in the first sheet with physical characteristics would be more subtle shifts. While a blond haired child can grow up to be a true red head, or darker brown hair, a black haired child will normally stay black haired.
So use your discretion on them is the best way to go when writing a growing up type of story. -
Your stuff is actually pretty good. (I'm waiting for a sequel to the Dresdenverse story, myself.)
My biggest pet peeve is the, "I wouldn't write it that way" reviewers. Ok, great, then go write it your way!
A: Agreed, Foe. They should go write their own when they are telling another person what they can and cannot write.
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You forget one very important thing there; it's fangirl's. Not saying all, but a good deal of fangirls have been known to fly off the handle when they see someone writing a story about their 'pairing' and find the roles are reversed or one isn't just the 'seme' and 'uke' all the time. Main reason why I like to stay away from writing pure fanfiction and putting my own OC's into the mix, the fangirls/fanboys, I stay away from those as much as humanly possible.
A: Initial D is a street racing anime that targets a male audience. Fan girls are fairly rare watchers of this particular anime. If you ever check out the Initial D offerings here on AFF's archives, you will discover there are roughly 30 stories total and maybe a dozen writers. I don't get very many readers, but a lot of them decide they like the sparks between Takumi and Keisuke. The core group who follows what I write is maybe a dozen fan girls, plus the people who don't want to read the sex, while following the actual saga as it unfolds. The second group will tell me every typo I make which makes me happy since I do like to revise and perfect my work. Some of the rabid "only allowed this yaoi couple" variety fan girls crack me up the hardest. Rivalry Series has been around for a few years, and has found a few converts among the rare yet rabid fangirls for some reason that I cannot hope to fathom. Maybe the sparks made the reading more interesting than Takumi being a "Yes darling" puppet, which he can only be when with Ryosuke?
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Have to agree on the dominant part. You see it a lot in yaoi and a good deal of the time in anything that has two guys in any sexual relationship with each other. The roles being changed every so often is something that is always refreshing to see, to bad it's rather rare.
A: ROFL. I freak out the status quo readers a lot due to having a switch off system relationship. The level of freak out over the debut of my Rivalry Revealed series resulted in emails, comment messages, plus a plethora of reviews about "How could you make Takumi the one in charge of screwing Keisuke ever?" The fact I have Keisuke in charge as often as Takumi continues to make my Initial D series a matter of epic unsettled incomprehension for the "Takumi plays the girl role only" class of fangirl readers.
A few have told me that my writing style, and realistic feeling relationship is refreshing, but many readers actively object in spades. Seems that not many fan girls want to read dominant male swapping to the bottom by choice variety stories. Guess it is all about being stereotyped script for some readers. Still, the core group of fans I do have are very loyal because they find the work refreshing so I refuse to pander to the disgruntled. Takumi was never a girl to begin with, so why should I treat him as if he were a girl and only had a slot and no tab?
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I am pansexual and a guy, so I'd need to know at least how to perform anal sex right since I have a liking for guys. I will say this though, enough hand lotion on AND inside the anus, along with a nice coat on what ever is going into it, might let you not have to put one inch in at a time. I speak from experience on this, only because of a mishap with a cucumber while I was alone....... which also comes to another lesson for all to learn; don't use to much lotion.
A: I went to my gay friends who are gay for my information about anal. I also know a couple gals who like anal also. Getting first hand information from people who do have experience in the department which makes the writing far more realistic. I portray emotional attachments plus the stages of fore play that are needed to make the sex good for both sides. Then again, I also swap out which of my yaoi couple is dominant, another thing all my gay pals have mentioned they do. I think there is a huge problem with only one dominant and only one receiver due to the problem of portraying one male as a girl in a guy's birthday suit. Men are still men, and they do tend to switch roles based upon moods, and trust levels.
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I hate you ALL!!! Oh sorry, I thought you were reviewing my story
Do what I do, read the reviews you think are worthwhile and ignore the rest
As for getting slammed when you try to review someone else's work, screw them too. If I try to help a drowning man and he spits in my face, well I'm gonna let him drown.
Unfortunately we are, as a whole, a pretty pathetic and annoying species: You have those whose egos are so fragile that anything that could be percieved as negative just sets off. Also, you have those whose self-worth is so low, they are only happy when bashing other; they can't bring themselves up, so they try and knock everyone else down.
So if your writing to make everyone happy, you're doomed! Make yourself happy first then those you deem worth your time. Remember your time is finite, don't waste it on the dregs of humanity, there are good people out there who will truly apriciate it, it's your job to find them - and that goes for everything, not just writing.
Ok, need some smart ass comment here" Some people need a high five...in the face...with a chair...just sayin...
A: The point of this complete rant was how people beg and demand reviews, then cause trouble for those who aren't brown noser class reviewers though. I don't bother with any of them any longer. I removed the nerve wracking obnoxiousness from my life. I can't trust the writer to be mature, so I have no need to bother with giving feed back. Problem solved. Besides, I don't have the energy to waste considering I've been very busy with the very rough real world all year long. I'm not going to waste time I do not have searching for anyone who may or may not prove to fit the good and mature writer category. Plenty of folks say they are those things, and they are lying through their teeth. Simple answer is to back button on crappy tales, and get out, or simply not review on the rare occasions I have an hour to read a story these days.
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All amounts to doing research, the more research you do the better you are likely to be in your writing of the opposite sex. Also I would like to just say I agree about the dick girl comment on the first page, one involving yaoi/slash and the like. I mean people who only do their research on yaoi alone is going to be a poor writer for male/male stories of any kind; at least involving sexual scenes if nothing else. The only difference between male/male yaoi and dick girl's is often the fact the guys in yaoi just don't have breasts. Don't get me wrong, I actually do happen to enjoy yaoi, but my opinion stands. Mean you don't just apply lotion or cum or anything slick, slimy, or wet and then just slide on in slowly or in one mighty thrust, I mean that would not only hurt, but cause bleeding like you wouldn't believe. Lotion or what I said above is a good start, but you always have to at least ease in an inch and pull out, then go in an inch deeper the next time and repeat the process until your either balls deep or both men are comfortable and can start on the thrusting portion.
Now that doesn't go for just guys, that's basically anal sex in general, or at least the first couple of times you do it with the person. Feel like I've went off topic, so I'm just gonna end it here.
A: Agreed because anal is all about prepping the one on the receiving end so that person won't get torn up. I thought I was the only one aware of that aspect of sexuality. Glad I am not the only person who has read up on the subject, and talked to my gay pals who confirmed my research some time ago.
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My writing is something that is therapeutic and I for one do not care if I get a single review. People have left me reviews saying that my writing sucks, and after deleting their review I must say that I agree. So does 95% of the mis-spelled schock across all of the fan sites in the web.
Take for instance character bashing, I have seen people who put badly written stories up and get 500 to 600 'reviews' from insipid readers who wouldn't know a colon from a period (and I amusingly use anatomical terms deliberately, for the waterheads who do not know the difference). Then I get 'nasty-grams' from people who say I had no right to even leave a review because I thought that the bash sucked. This is mostly on FF, but again I digress (low IQ's make me wretch).
I take under advisement that what I write is not to all peoples tastes either. Okay.....
When I write, it is a release, an outlet for my creative side. Better than trying to act out some foolish whim. But, ah me, time to digress again....
And for anyone who thinks I have issues, there is the second finger on either hand. (Figure that one out)
I love sarcasm, wit, politically incorrect humor, sex jokes, and sometimes even a good old-fashioned conversation. I miss those. Triple-play on the digression...
All of that aside, just shut the hell up and enjoy yourself. I DO!
A: See you have a good attitude about the things you seek to accomplish in your writing. You are not going around asking people to review your work with the expectation that all shall stroke your ego. I have no problem with people who are clear that they are not out to get reviews specifically. My frustration mounted to the explosive point with people who were begging for reviews, even promoting guilt trips for the purpose of getting them. Some people actually get a kick out of abusing their readers if the readers do not fawn over them. I got sick of the abusive side of people seeking ego boosts, and ranted about it because it is unfair of writers to demand reviews, and then attack those who leave reviews for them.
The whole point of this thread dealt with being asked to review someone's story and then getting harsh attacks from those who requested the review. Personally, I decided that I am not willing to be disrespected any longer, nor do I have the time to waste on people who say they wish something that they don't actively want at all. I stopped reviewing anyone who requested a review from me around Thanksgiving of last year. I have enough real life problems on my plate without playing into the games of the diva crowd. I for one have never taken abuse from others for any given time. I hit my quota of abusive writers a while back, so I said no more.
I also decided to no longer accept beta help requests for the same reason. Anyone who is unwilling to actually attempt to clean up or focus their work is likewise seeking an ego stroke, not an actual beta. So my reasons for frustration have evaporated. The real world offers plenty of punishments by rote, and I have no desire to be drawn into empty egotistical stupidity online. Having made that decision freed up my energy to focus on the deaths in my family, and the car accident scenario my son was in, among other real issues.
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Lots of great ways to go about the process of creating have been listed since I was last here. I think many of them are wonderful ways to go about the creative process. I can think of several of these ideas from dreams jotted down as the spark, and across the spectrum that I have done at various times in my own writing career. Writing is such a malleable form of creative expression that I think most of us have done variations of all these ideals at some point.
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I just wanted to thank you for posting these. I have copy/pasted them into word for my use. You're great!
A: Awesome to read that you plan to use these cribs. I'm always happiest when I can be of help to others. So very glad you like them and you are most welcome.
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Having read your thoughts, VladPryde, got me to chuckling. I grew up surrounded by males instead of females so I understand your points perfectly. I'm aware of the bragging and other elements because the guys always forgot that I was a girl when I was growing up. ROFL. If anything I can scarce write from a female perspective due to the pervasive amount of time I spent around men of various ages which makes me quite the oddball. Being in a femaqle body did me little good because I never understood where the girls were coming from at all. Then again, most girls do not grow up fixing cars and tractors and heavy road construction equipment.
You made a lot of great points in your 2 posts. Watching guys having pissing contests and all the rest was a first hand experience for me over the years. The need to stake claims and prove dominance is very much a reality of the male condition. I have seen plenty of different ways in which guys go about the one upsmanship over the years. LMAO. It is a primal instinct, and you nailed it beautifully. The drive to meet the criteria of dominant male is very strong in some men also. So thanks for pointing those elements out for those who were unaware of that facet of the male psyche.
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These worksheets do seem really helpful, but I'll admit that when I first saw them I thought of character sheets I used in role playing way back in high school. That last one I'll put to good use and definitely echoes things I've seen in screenwriting books. Thanks for these!
A: You are most welcome. Some ideas on these work sheets are inspired by role playing cribs too. The last one on the list is a variation of the snowflake technique. It helps to nail down the directions for the story so you can keep track of where you want to go with a tale. Good luck and have fun with them.
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Awesome. congrats on taking the plunge.
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Have gotten chapters 18 and 19 written and posted to Driven Heart the Prequel after a terribly long hiatus. They are raw drafts at the moment, but due to not having written anything for several months, I went ahead and posted the two as a set of sorts. I will revise them as soon as I am humanly able to do so. I apologize for the long wait for those who have liked the story to date.
Free anthology from Torquere Press
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Congratulations, my friend. I bet you are thrilled to be included since it could increase the sell of your other books.
I'm so happy for you.