i hope you dance

Any RPers out there? Any MUSHers?

2012-05-10T16:24:13Z

I'm part of a new MUSH, NYC: Veil of Shadows. It's a modern/dark fantasy/horror/gothic MUSH that borrows from and combines different mythos into something new, and we're really looking for players.

Here's the intro from the welcome page:

The city that doesn’t sleep. To the untrained eye it is a bustling mecca of people and energy, lights and sounds and smells. It’s a perpetually in motion metropolis where businesses rise and fall, careers are made and broken, and there is always something for everyone from tourist to resident.

Beneath that glitzy veneer, however, lies an unseen world. This is the world where those with the power to channel it heal themselves, call upon fire or make the ground break. In this world, there is a man listening to the thoughts of those around him on the subway, there is a woman moving objects without using her hands. When the sun sets, a woman rises from the shadows taking refuge in the beauty of the night to feed upon the blood of the unsuspecting. As the moon rises full in the sky a man takes refuge in Central Park and one might hear howls at the sky.

This is New York behind the Veil of Shadows. Welcome to a place where the supernatural flourishes in the modern world. New York: Veil of Shadows is a modern fantasy/horror MU* that borrows loosely from a variety of media outlets to create an entirely new supernatural realm. It is a world where vampires do business in skyscrapers or back alleys, a world where ghosts wander the streets and haunt places old and new, where werewolves run in packs and witches and warlocks pass on their craft to the next worthy generation. It is a place of magic and suspense, filled with intrigue and colored by myth and legend.

Come, create a character and take your place behind The Veil of Shadows.

The address is: nycmush.net:4228

And Now For Something Completely Different . . .

2011-12-23T00:58:07Z

New post at fantasy_echoes.

Creative, but not fic.

This entry was originally posted at http://fikgirl.dreamwidth.org/190406.html. If you have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using that account. If you don't have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using OpenID.

[MEME] Because I Can . . .

2011-12-17T15:13:54Z

It's nearing the end of the year, and also nearing the end of my creativity. I've been RPing and NanoWriMo-ing and I need to kick start my creative juices so . . . a meme!

(Stolen from elleth)

I - If I made Cinderella, the audience would immediately be looking for a body in the coach. —Alfred Hitchcock

When I write a story, what do readers immediately look for?
_________

II - Name one of my fics in comments (or a scene from one of them) and I will (try to) tell you what I was thinking when I wrote it, why I wrote it in the first place, what's going on in the characters' heads, why I chose certain words, what this moment means in the context of the rest of the fic, lots of awful puns, and anything else that you'd expect to find on a DVD commentary track.
_________

III - Tell me about a story I haven't written, and I'll give you between one and three sentences from that story.
_________

IV - Comment with either "Five things that never happened to Character"-style prompts or "Three pieces of your personal canon for Character," and I shall see what I can do to oblige.
_________

V - Name a character from one of my fandoms below and I'll give you:

(a) three facts about them from my personal canon/fanon
(b) a reason he/she sucks
(c) a reason he/she is amazing
(d) five things that I'd like to see happen to them
(e) five people that I can't ship that character with and why
_________

VI - Give me a character (or several) from any of my fandoms, and I’ll (try to) give you one reason for liking (or disliking!) the character, two favourite ships, three favourite friendships, and four pieces of headcanon.
_________

VII - Comment with two characters and a prompt word, and I'll tell you about their first kiss in a drabble.
_________

VII - Name a woman in one of my fandoms and I will attempt a drabble (or something drabble-ish) about her. If you give me a keyword, quotation, line of poetry or lyric, I will use it if it sparks something for me.

To help things along, a review of my fandom leanings: Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Castle, Doctor Who, Stargate SG-1, Stargate Atlantis, The Big Bang Theory, The Tomorrow People, The Vampire Diaries (also, The Walking Dead, but that's kinda dark and depressing, so let's steer clear, yeah?)

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Tumblr: Why? I don't know.

2011-12-17T14:24:05Z

I have created a tumblr for my fantasy_echoes blog.

Why? I haven't the slightest idea, but it was very late, I was very tired and it seemed like a good idea at the time. (I'm pretty sure a lot of forgotten and buried memories from college started in much the same way, except that there was more alcohol involved.)

For those interested, it can be found at fantasy-echoes.tumblr.com. I'll start posting my creative, fictional endeavors there as well, as soon as I figure out what I'm doing with the dang thing.

This entry was originally posted at http://fikgirl.dreamwidth.org/189795.html. If you have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using that account. If you don't have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using OpenID.

NaNoWriMo: I Did It

2011-12-02T13:03:41Z

I won.

Thirty days, fifty thousand words, and even with some really bad days and downtime in there.

But, I did it. For the first time ever, I finished NaNoWriMo. I went into this feeling like a cheater, or like it didn't really count because what I'm writing is a work of fan fiction. However, I chugged and slaved over this fan fic like I have anything else I've ever written, perhaps more so because it was a new fandom and new characters. I went in with a vague and basic idea, and at 50K words, the story wasn't doing nearly what I thought it would do, and the road it took was so meandering that it never got to the place I wanted it . . . but I did get 50,000 words.

It's not as easy as it sounds.

One of the things I had to do was turn off my inner editor. Sometimes I could, sometimes I couldn't. The hardest part was just remembering that it didn't matter what I wrote so long as I wrote, that fixing it could come later. That editing comes later, when it's finished.

I'm not finished yet. I looked at my (vague) plan and realized if I stick to it, the fic will never be finished. So, it's getting a sequel. Yes, I do believe that I can really do it . . . because I've done it once already. However, before then I have to wind up the very last chapter. Then I have to go back and re-read. And edit and . . . yeah, I have a lot of work ahead of me. After putting so much blood, sweat and tears into this (or at least hours upon hours), I do want to present it to the world as a finished product.

Maybe this weekend, I'll throw an excerpt up on fantasy_echoes.

Anyway, I can say that I'm a winner. I won NaNoWriMo.

This entry was originally posted at http://fikgirl.dreamwidth.org/189661.html. If you have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using that account. If you don't have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using OpenID.

NaNoWriMo 2011 - Check In

2011-11-12T19:31:46Z

Yesterday was hard.

I got my official NaNo recommended word count, but it was by the skin of my teeth and it was a push-pull struggle all the way. My focus was off and while I knew what I wanted to say, I was having a hell of a time saying it. The end product was crap of the highest magnitude, but the words got written.

I'm hoping for a little better progress today, but it's an up and down day due to Girl activities. I broke 30,000 words (by my count, I haven't checked it against the official NaNo validator), so I only have 20,000 to go. In a way, that's good. According to NaNo and my NaNoWriMo report card, if I keep at the pace I'm writing, I'll finish next Friday, November 18th.

Go me. But . . . I am wordy. This epic work of fan nuttiness will not be finished in 50,000 words. There will still be more story to write once I hit 50,000 words. That's a bit daunting because my biggest problem lately has been finishing anything. I'm hoping that having the story halfway or three-quarters done will at least encourage me.

Then comes the editing. I am my own worse critic. I don't want to go back and delete the whole thing, because I decide that it wholly SUCKS. I also know that once it's done, it won't be ready to present to fandom. The first two chapters have to be completely stripped down and re-worked, though I hit my groove around Chapter 4. (Barring the crap-tacular vomit that spewed from my fingers last night.)

Plunging ahead, dealing with zombies. And vampires. And werewolves. Oh my!

I'm trying to stay positive, and most importantly, not looking back over my shoulder too much. That way leads to madness.

(I missed my check in last night. Didn't update my word count before midnight so it looks I did nothing yesterday. On the plus side, maybe that means when I update again tonight, it'll look spectacular?)

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NaNoWriMo 2011 - Check In

2011-11-10T17:59:12Z

I am either doing something right, or doing something completely wrong.

I have, thus far, managed to keep up a steady pace with NaNoWriMo this year. I haven't gotten overwhelmed, or (super) distracted, and I've stayed on task. I'm already at 25K words, and the story has barely started.

(Yeah, but I've come to accept that I'm a bit wordy, and editing comes later, right?)

So, what am I doing differently?

I'm not entirely certain. This year I went in without an outline or even a general plan. I had an idea and decided I would just start typing and see where the words and the characters took me. I also haven't limited myself to writing in a linear fashion. I have a basic idea of the story and outline - for the first part - once the words started flowing. So, plugging ahead on a later scene, or not stopping to stress when I can't get a scene isn't a problem.

If I can't find the words, I move on.

One thing I am doing differently this year, I'm writing a work of fan fiction. Call it lazy or cheating, but it's working for me. I'm getting words out and I'm having fun while doing it. In recent years, I've had stress fits over NaNo, or not enjoyed it much. I'm enjoying the story the characters are telling, so who cares if it's somebody's else's sandbox?

I'm calling this a dry run. If I can do this for a(n) (epic) fan fic, maybe next year I'll be ready to tackle a work of original fiction.

Or, maybe I'll stick to the sequel.

(Oh yeah, I'm MommieGeek over at NaNoWriMo if anyone wants to be writing buddies.)

This entry was originally posted at http://fikgirl.dreamwidth.org/188719.html. If you have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using that account. If you don't have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using OpenID.

NaNoWriMo. Yes, Again.

2011-11-04T22:21:45Z

Yes, I'm trying NaNoWriMo again this year. If anyone out there wants to add me as a Writing Buddy at the site, you'll find me under MommieGeek.

That's all for now. I'll babble ... or vent . . .later.

This entry was originally posted at http://fikgirl.dreamwidth.org/188420.html. If you have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using that account. If you don't have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using OpenID.

It's Quiet . . . A Little Too Quiet

2011-03-20T17:03:45Z

It's been almost a month since my last update.

I would love to update and say that I've been writing furiously on my story for crossbigbang, but that wouldn't be the truth. I have tried, I mean, really really tried, but I'm stuck somewhere in Chapter Five and Six and don't quite know how to get myself going again. Not from lack of trying, simply from lack of interest or motivation. I read the story, and the characters are not singing to me the way they used to. The story is not keeping me awake at night, or talking to me in the shower, or creeping up on me when I'm driving in my car.

I am, however, writing. After a fashion. I've joined a new RP. It's a MUX (Please don't ask. I don't know why it's a MUX and not a MUSH or a MUD or a MOO. I'm just happy to figure out the interface - woefully slowly - and being doing some interactive type of RP.) It's not officially open yet, and when it is, it will probably be invitation or audition-only, so I'm not going to link the URL just yet. I'm getting additional writing outside of the MUX by posting blogs and "off-screen" scenes, which is where I've been flexing my writing muscle. I'll likely post those over on fantasy_echoes over the next few days.

In other news, The Big 4-0 came and went just as all birthdays do. I'm not the sort of person who's going to break into tears because I'm 40 and I haven't accomplished the goals I set for myself at 18 (or 25). I'm 40, I'm alive, I'm healthy, I'm employed and in this day and age all of that is saying a lot and should be appreciated. And I do appreciate it all.

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FICLET: Things That Go Bite in the Night

2011-03-20T16:42:37Z

This is one of those blog/off-screen scenes/adventure stories I talked about for one of my characters on the MUX.

Title: Things That Go Bite in the Night
Author: fikgirl
Rating: TV-PG
Genre: Modern Gothic Horror/Urban Fantasy
Summary: Jasmine's world gets a little shaken up.

The cry for help is so loud that Jasmine wonders why no one else seems to hear it. Yes, it’s telepathic -- which means it’s literally all in her head -- but she’s sharing the cafe table with two other psychics and they don’t even bat an eye. Jasmine, she’s not so lucky. The fear and surprise cause her head to jerk up, and it’s only the quick reflexes of Colleen that stops her from sending her coffee cup crashing to the floor.

“Jas, are you okay?” Colleen’s gray eyes cloud with concern. One hand reaches out to steady Jasmine.

The rest is posted over at fantasy_echoes.

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Lost Website, Help?

2011-02-20T15:36:54Z

I thought that I had bookmarked a website, but I can't locate it anywhere. Maybe someone out there can help me?

I'm looking for a website that lists the music played during television shows (not the theme songs!) I know that there are lots of them, but so far, the ones that I've found are not the one I stumbled across last fall. I'm looking for a website that lists the songs, has a description of the scene that the song was heard in and lets you hear a sample of the song . . . I don't think hearing the sample required going to iTunes or Amazon, but I could be wrong.

Could anyone help me out? Maybe someone will have a website that I haven't tried yet!

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[Update] & [Meme]

2011-02-11T13:28:28Z

I might have gone briefly into hibernation, but I am still here. I haven't had my head buried in the sand, contrary to how it might have appeared, and I'm still holding myself to the requirement of posting something at least once per week.

I'm still working on "Rewritten" for crossbigbang, but I have to confess that I got a little distracted this past week. I'm taking part in a new RP, a Modern Gothic world with psychics, vampires, were-creatures and the like. It's amazingly detailed and pretty awesome, and the creator of the game/world and her partners in crime are incredibly cool. I've actually gamed with two of them before, and I'm looking forward to this because I know that they are very talented RPers. It is a MUX, which is a whole new medium for me, but I'm learning it slowly.

Why is there no link? Because the game is still in the planning and getting off the ground stages. As soon as I get the word that it's gone live and is ready for action, I'm going to pimp the hell out of it.

Today I'm going to dive into "Rewritten." I think I needed the break to figure out what the characters were trying to tell me, and now that they've had some downtime, I ready to go there again.

The Fifteen Character Meme is ready for public showing. Sort of. Mostly. I'm going to start here and post them slowly. Some of them were real stumpers for me, and I'm still pondering them. Some of them are also horrible, terrible plot bunnies. (And no cheating and asking to play after you've seen the character list!)

My List of Characters

Jack O’Neill (Stargate SG-1)
Bonnie Bennett (Vampire Diaries)
Sheldon Cooper (Big Bang Theory)
Ami Jackson (The Tomorrow People)
Rick Castle (Castle)
Alexis Castle (Castle)
Adam Newman (The Tomorrow People)
Annie Sawyer (Being Human)
Daniel Jackson (Stargate SG-1)
Sam Carter (Stargate SG-1)
Damon Salvatore (Vampire Diaries)
Kate Beckett (Castle)
Caroline Forbes (Vampire Diaries)
Walter Bishop (Fringe)
Penny (Big Bang Theory)

kerravonsen's questions:

If #13 wrote an autobiography, what would it be called? Would it contain the truth? Would it need to be ghost-written? If it did, which of the other characters would be best at ghost-writing? How well would it sell?

Caroline Forbes would write an autobiography called Don't Call Me Vampire Barbie. It would chronicle her life as the golden girl and cheerleader at Mystic Falls High School, and then turn dark as she entails her conversion to vampirism and her abrupt discovery of the world of the supernatural. Filled with anecdotes and deep insight that people wouldn't expect from a girl like Caroline, it's a best seller.

Unfortunately, because the world as a whole isn't aware of the existence of all the things of nightmares and horror movies, it's considered a metaphorical retelling of a horrible life in an idyllic small town. She can't do book tours or signings either because one of the people that her book pissed off is an Original Master Vampire named Klaus, so Caroline spends her New York Times Bestseller fame in hiding.

#1, #8, #11 and #15 form a band. What is the name of the band? Who is the lead singer? What would their instruments be? Would they play well or badly?

Jack O'Neill (SG-1), Annie Sawyer (Being Human), Damon Salvatore (Vampire Diaries) and Penny (Big Bang Theory) form a band called When Worlds Collide. Initially, they think that Penny will be the lead singer, but that's only until they hear her sing. They give lead to Annie, and Penny sulks for a while until she realizes that she plays mean bass. Jack plays drums and Damon oozes sex on the guitar.

They aren't terribly good, nor are they terribly bad. They play mostly local gigs for fun. Sometimes Damon has to take over lead vocals when Annie has an existential crisis and stops being visible to regular people.

Penny's been hanging out with a ghost and a vampire so long, she can still see and hear Annie even though most normal humans can't, when Annie does "fade." The first time it happens, Jack pretends like he can't, but Annie gets so upset and Penny yells at him and threatens to break his fishing rod so he never does that again. Jack never explains why he thinks he can see her, though. After he disappears for a month with no explanation and some government types come looking for him, they all realize it's better that they probably just don't ask.

#9 and #12 go into business together. What is the business, and does it succeed or fail?

Daniel Jackson (SG-1) and Kate Beckett (Castle) open a pawn shop together. Daniel because it's a great opportunity to get his hand on old antiques and possible alien artifacts that have been floating around earth. Kate joins up with him because the location is the ideal place to get tips from snitches and informants, and she's surprised just how many of them like shiny things. Also, Daniel is able to woo information out of random people without them even realizing that they've been played.

The business is a roaring success, much to the disdain of both partners. It's pivotal to a mass murder case that Kate believes is tied to the occult, but is really tied to a small alien invasion force and several alien artifacts of power. Kate is brought into awareness of the stargate program, but happily signs all non-disclosure forms because really, she has enough on her plate as a homicide detective.

Unfortunately, they've stumbled across enough high dollar antiques the History Channel comes to offer them a reality show. That makes it hard to maintain a cover, catch murderers and go hunting for alien devices so they sell the place and go their separate ways.

They keep in touch though. Once a year (sometimes twice), Kate sends Daniel photos of a crime scene that doesn't seem right, and she's never surprised when he walks into the precinct flanked by his team.

On her birthday, Daniel sends her unique, hand crafted jewelry or pretty gemstones. Everyone just assumes he got them in his world travels, but Kate knows that these gifts come from light years away and that makes them more priceless than anyone can ever imagine.

#2 and #3 wake up and find themselves locked in an empty room together, with no memory of how they got there. What happens? Would they be rescued by #4, or was #4 responsible for their predicament?

Bonnie Bennett (Vampire Diaries) and Sheldon Cooper (Big Bang Theory) wake up disoriented and alone. Sheldon starts freaking out, because he woke up on the floor of all places, and he knows he's covered in germs. Also, Bonnie shouldn't touch him because she might be covered in germs, and no he can't remember how they got there but that's just impossible because he has an eidetic memory. It's clearly some sort of government plot, by less than stellar masterminds because if they were intelligent government conspirators they would realize that the mind of Sheldon Cooper is a terrible thing to waste and doesn't deserve to be locked up alongside some mediocre high school student.

It's at the mediocre high school comment that Bonnie loses her patient and pulls a spell out of her ass that's meant to silence Sheldon but only makes him cough. That's a bad move though, and it drains her, leaving her passed out with her nose bleeding. Sheldon flails around uselessly, screams (and coughs) for help and finally, reluctantly tries to wake Bonnie and make certain that she hasn't had an aneurysm. The fact that it involves repeatedly shaking her shoulder and saying, "Random teenager," (shake) "Random teenager" (shake) "Random teenager," makes Bonnie a bit cranky when she does come to.

Ami Jackson (Tomorrow People) teleports in and announces that she's going to rescue them, but they have a very small window. Sheldon declares that he must have hit his head because it's scientifically impossible for people to teleport, and then goes into another long tirade about the lacking skills of the rescue efforts if they are sending a single unarmed, albeit attractive, female to save him from this plight. Ami mutters about wanting to kill him, Bonnie sympathizes and thinks they should leave him there, but in the end he's teleported out despite his protests against being touched.

They learn that they'd been grabbed by a shady government organization looking for "unique" individuals to study. That is, once they're able to explain what happened because Sheldon spends a good forty minutes chastising Ami against teleporting him and explaining the myriad of ways it could have damaged and or killed him, and he's only interrupted when he has a crisis and begins to wonder if he's still Sheldon Cooper.

Bonnie and Sheldon are eventually returned to their respective homes (Sheldon not nearly soon enough for anyone's liking). Bonnie thanks Ami profusely and they keep in touch via email and internet and Facebook and Twitter.

Sheldon never thanks Ami.

#5 discovers that #14 is an alien (or has been replaced by an alien). What do they do?

Rick Castle (Castle) discovers that Walter Bishop (Fringe) is an alien while doing research for his new Nikki Heat novel. His publisher suggests that he work outside his comfort zone and give Nikki a wild, different sort of case. After asking around, his research seems him to Harvard and Walter Bishop and Walter's crazy science ideas. Castle ends up getting pulled in to one of Fringe divisions investigations, and he's the one to figure out that Walter isn't Walter, but that he's been body swapped by aliens who are working with the enemy in an alternate dimension to destroy our world. It's Castle's whack-a-doodle theories that save the day (and Walter).

Afterwards, he spends a whole month holed up typing madly away. Much to his agent's dismay, when Castle emerges, he's not written the next Nikki Heat installment, but rather a scifi novel. It's actually not bad, but his publisher won't publish it under his name, so it's published under the pseudonym of M. Alexis (short for Martha and Alexis), and scifi geeks everywhere fall in love with it. Later, it's licensed and developed for television and Martha lands the role as the HBIC of the super secret evil agency.

Castle takes Walter a signed copy, and visits with him sometimes too. After repeated reminders, Walter finally reads Castle's Derek Storm novels, then stops talking to Castle for a year after he discovers Derek Storm was killed off.

#6, #7 and #10 have to work together to save the world. What is the peril? Are we doomed?

Alexis Castle (Castle), Adam Newman (The Tomorrow People), and Sam Carter (SG-1) have to work together to save the world from invading aliens. It's all another day at the office for Sam, except that she's been cut off from the SGC and can't reach anyone at all. Adam's got his handy teleportation and telepathy abilities, and he's able to get Sam across the country; Alexis has her father's ingenuity and creativity. When Sam gets stuck, Alexis prompts her to think outside the box, and of course, the world is saved.

. . . More to come.

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[Writing] Choose Your Own Adventure

2011-02-07T23:45:24Z

In addition to the story I'm working on for crossbigbang, I'm also mucking around with a multi-fandom zombie apocalypse (and post-apocalypse) story. Thus far, what I have of it is pretty free form, not much plot and is all in the beginnings. I'm introducing the characters, setting up the apocalypse, and letting the survival tactics and character interaction go wild.

The story has a general framework - namely survival after a zombie apocalypse - but that's about all.

I've been considering posting it as a sort of a "choose your own adventure" once I get a solid framework for it. I'm not so much thinking about having alternate paths already planned out, or multiple endings, but more like giving the reader a few options of what they want to see next in the story.

I was going to post a poll to find out if anyone would be interested in playing along if I did such a thing, but my account is free, so I can't post a poll. So, I'll just ask: would anyone be interested in helping me out with this fic experiment if I went that road? Any thoughts and suggestions are welcome.

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[Review] Tear the World Down (The Vampire Diaries)

2011-02-07T20:01:53Z

I don't usually do this, but every now and then I stumble across a story that blows me away and something like this just has to be done.

Title: Tear the World Down
Fandom: The Vampire Diaries, TV Universe
Author: isisizabel
Rating: M/R (some parts NC-17, but those are not found at FF.Net)
Words: 50,000+
Summary: Bonnie and Damon have to put aside their differences to help stop a common enemy.

First of all, this story features two of my favorite Vampire Diaries characters in the leading roles. Anything with Bonnie and Damon, their snark and their clashing, mingling energy is always a good thing. The story is a non-canon pairing, so if you're not willing to squint and blink and see a little magic between Mystical Falls' resident witch and bad boy vampire, then you'll probably want to skip this one. (I still vote for reading it.)

The summary pretty much sums it up, so I won't repeat that here. The story begins immediately after the season one finale, picking up the carnage and destruction where the television series left it off. Uncle John has been reacquainted with Katherine, Jeremy downed pills and Caroline is dangerously injured from the car accident. The story then becomes completely AU, spinning into a world of its own that could have been written for the screen.

isisizabel shows that Bonnie is confident in her powers and knows that she can match Damon and take him down. Damon finds her new confidence simultaneously annoying and intriguing. However, even though Bonnie has found herself, and knows herself, she's not strong enough for what's coming. For that she needs Damon's help, and something that only he can provide. The choice they make brings them closer than they, or anyone in their circle could ever imagine as a grudging truce turns into a very strong and potent attraction and romance.

What I like about this story is that unlike other Bonnie/Damon 'ship stories, this one makes it believable. Damon doesn't just wake up one morning, out of love with Elena and decide to pursue her best friend. Bonnie doesn't see Damon shirtless and suddenly become a simpering hormonal laden teenage girl who will forgive Damon anything because she's been harboring a secret crush. This story doesn't pretend that everything we've seen on the big screen hasn't happened, isn't real. It's a nice, refreshing change.

The story is elegantly written. isisizabel is able to convey a world of emotion and description in very short, precisely chosen words. I can see and hear the characters, and they are all perfectly in character. There's no Elena bashing, no hidden Damon/Elena hate.

If you're looking for something to read and have time to spare, I highly recommend this one.

This entry was originally posted at http://fikgirl.dreamwidth.org/185915.html. If you have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using that account. If you don't have a Dreamwidth account, please comment there using OpenID.

[Meme] Fifteen Characters

2011-02-07T12:59:57Z

The Fifteen Characters meme is still open. This is great for the creative process, so feel free to jump on the band wagon.

Here's the meme:

1) Make a list of fifteen characters first, and keep it to yourself for the moment. (That way you're not leading the questions asked to fit the characters.)

2) Ask your flist to post questions in the comments.

For example:

'1, 9 and 15 are chosen by a prophecy to save the world from 4. Do they succeed?'
'Under what circumstances might 5 and 7 fall in love?'

3)After your flist has asked enough questions, round them up and answer them using the fifteen characters you selected beforehand, then post them.

My list is ready to go. (And if you've already submitted questions, don't resubmit. I'm just looking for more participants.)

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[Graphics] (Round Three) Rediscovered Icons: Song Set

2011-02-06T15:47:02Z

I remember this set of icons fondly. It was the first, last and only song set that I ever did. It took some time to find the right pictures and screen caps and to get it all to work the way I envisioned. I did attempt other song sets later, but I gave up before they really got off the ground.

Stargate SG-1 Song Set, "Dust in the Wind"

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Created with angelamaria's Icon Table Generator @ Bauble

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Too Early. Bah!

2011-02-06T13:38:44Z

The Girl had tummy troubles last night. From the top of her loft bed. I'll allow the world at large to use their imagination on that one.

So, it's Sunday morning, it's only just past 8AM and I'm awake. Oh, the great little joys that life brings. She is, of course, curled up with her favorite blanket and a pillow, and sleeping soundly again. I'm pondering my second cup of tea.

At least this has put aside any excuses to delay in getting started on doing laundry. (Explanation of the icon? DH and I standing around looking at each other in The Girl's room, and going "Are you going to clean that up?" In the end, we double-teamed it, but I completely expected a challenge of rock-paper-scissors at any moment.)

In other news, I (finally) got around to watching "Merlin" last night, "The Tears of Uther Pendragon (Part II)". I love that show so much. No, it's not the greatest fantasy genre show ever made, and there are plot gaps, but I can't help but really enjoy it.

Yesterday, paperhearts talked about the Unpopular Female Character Love Post, and one of the characters is Guinevere from Merlin. I'm not active in Merlin fandom, so I didn't realize that there was Gwen-hate. Of course, I probably should have because a) Gwen is made of awesome and b) she's a threat to the true love between Merlin and Arthur. Yes, in Arthurian legend, Guinevere was the woman who supposedly brought about the downfall of Camelot (I'd lay some blame on the shoulder of Lancelot as well, not to mention the fact that a king couldn't handle the betrayal without losing his mojo and really, Mordred figures in there somewhere, but I digress. ..) but Gwen right now is not that Queen. And given the loose play that the show gives to Arthurian legend, even if Gwen does follow that route, I think that it will at least have been shown that she does truly love Arthur.

I love the moments between them, the way that spark haunts them. Even though Gwen tries to remind herself (and Arthur) that she is a servant and put that distance between them, it's really half-hearted at best. She gives him counsel and speaks to him as friend, and they lower the class wall when no one else is around. They crossed a line last season, and no matter how they try, they'll never go back to where they were.

I also stayed up way past my bedtime watching episode 3x01 of (the Real) Being Human. Yes, I mean the UK version. Oh Mitchell! Call me crazy and tell me I'm seeing things, but there is a depth of feeling there between Mitchell and Annie that goes beyond friendship. Yes, George missed her too, and he cried when he thought Mitchell came back without her (mean trick to play on George, you cads!), but those long hugs between the pair, and the way they looked at one another . . . something is simmering beneath the surface. Whether or not it will come to a head, I don't know, but you'd have to be blind to deny that it's there.

Not sure what the other werewolves were about, except that maybe they like to kill vampires? And Lia's whole prediction about Mitchell's death?

Oh, I've missed you Being Human. My Being Human, not this parody of Mitchell, George and Annie that airs on Syfy (and has gotten enough encores to make me want to hurl.)

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[Graphics] Rediscovered Icons: The Tomorrow People

2011-02-06T01:22:47Z

The next batch. Organized faster than I thought.

If you want any, feel free to snag 'em.

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[Graphics] Rediscovered Icons: Angel & Buffy the Vampire Slayer

2011-02-05T18:09:11Z

Once upon a time, I made icons. Some are good. Some are bad, but they were all fun learning experiences. I've found them, and have decided to post them in (small batches) as time (and motivation and energy) permit.

ETA: Yes, they're all, to quote Faith, "Want. Take. Have."

Angel & Buffy the Vampire Slayer

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Created with angelamaria's Icon Table Generator @ Bauble

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[TV] A Shower and a Bath

2011-02-04T18:28:26Z

And yet another "Vampire Diaries," flailing post, although it doesn't come close to the happy flails of last week.

Let's start with the minor bits: Matt is still one-dimensional and annoying, Jenna remains the worse guardian ever, and I don't remember Man Witch Senior looking quite that run down before. Maybe it's intentional or maybe I just didn't notice it?

If it wasn't official last week, it is now declared so. I want the werewolf bitch gone (see what I did there?) I get it that she's all over the puppies versus bloodsuckers war and hate, but she just pisses me off. I want her dead. She is twisting poor Tyler's head all around and what she did to Caroline? Just to bait Stefan? (And Damon, who despite his protests to the contrary, clearly has a connection to all these people; it's not just about Elena and winning her heart. Rose (RIP) said it best last week: Damon has built a life here, he just needs to face up to it.)

Yes, Caroline knew Mason was dead, and she covered for Damon but . . . let's all be honest here, can anyone really stop Damon from doing anything when he puts his mind to it? (Other than by driving a stake through his beautiful chest, but we all know that's not going to happen. Thank goodness.) Caroline was genuinely trying to help Tyler, and trying to keep him off of Damon's radar so that Damon didn't kill him.

It's easy though to see where this is going. Tyler is going to have to choose: the wolves or his friends and I hope that he remembers that some of his friends are human. That a whole bunch of people (Jeremy, Elena, Bonnie) know his secret and haven't told. Don't plan on telling. Even after Caroline's words, she wouldn't want Damon to rip Tyler's heart out either. Though it might take a serious ass kicking or something as horrible as Caroline's torture for him to figure out which side he's really on.

(As an aside, I have to admit that it's really amusing that no one pointed out to Wolf!Bitch (yes, I know her name, I simply refuse to say it) that Mason was in bed with a vampire. Literally. Not just any vampire, but the most manipulative, deceptive, Bitch Queen of Vamp: Katherine.)

I loved the scene between Stefan and Tyler, and the fight scene. Each time there's a scene like this, when Stefan bares his fangs, it's always a delightful surprise. Stefan is so mild-mannered and calm compared to Damon. Stefan is settled and does "human" oh so very well that it's easy to forget that he's not human, that he's play acting as much as Damon, and that beneath that good boy exterior there is a deadly predator. Stefan can threaten and kick ass with the best of them, especially now that he's no longer on a bunny and squirrel diet.

In other news, it looks like Jeremy may be furthering his pursuit of Bonnie, and actually getting a chance now that Luka is (temporarily) out of the picture due to his and Man Witch Senior's involvement with Elijah.

Uncle/Daddy John came back into town, supposedly to protect Elena from Klaus. But I don't trust him. Elena doesn't trust him. Damon doesn't trust him. Stefan doesn't trust him (completely). Lot of trust issues going on there. Probably not entirely unfounded considering that Uncle/Daddy went to visit the imprisoned Katherine.

And lastly, Damon bare chested. In the shower. Damon bare chested with a towel around his waist. Damon bare chested. In a bubble bath.

I think I might need to go watch that episode again . . .

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[Real Life] Just When I Had Something to Look Forward to . . .

2011-02-04T18:03:55Z

One thing I love about my place of employment is that people look for ways to socialize. And eat. Because for some reason, socializing must involve eating, right? There are birthday celebrations, holiday luncheons, random "because it's been a while" luncheons. Always good food provided by the company potluck.

Today was the Super Bowl Party. Which, I had to miss because The Girl has an ear ache. Go figure. It's all about the timing right?

Oh well, it's a new year. I suppose we were due for an ear ache.

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[Writing] Should I or Shouldn't I?

2011-02-04T15:35:43Z

I'm still eyeballing scifibigbang. On one hand, I think that's putting a lot on my plate. However, on the other, I think it might just be what I need. I do have a second story in the works (although I would need to pull it together with an actual plot as opposed to just a setting and characters), but I think I could do that.

After diving in and working on "Rewritten" for the crossbigbang, I know that I can get the words out. (I forgot that getting the words out has never been my problem. My problem is in the finishing.) I'm using these challenges to force me to finish what I've started.

Now, writing two stories might be a problem, except that I suffer from writing ADD. Eventually, I'll have to take a break and back off of "Rewritten" for a day or so, and then I'll want to channel my energies elsewhere. Another story might be just thing to get me doing that.

Or it might not, if I get overwhelmed and can't meet the deadline.

I'm sitting the fence and don't know what to do. I have until the end of February to decide, so maybe I should wait and see how far along I am with "Rewritten"?

Le sigh.

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[Writing] Progress

2011-02-04T12:36:46Z

I'm going to do these weekly and shoot for the weekend.

All Projects, inkitout goal

8146 / 75000
(10.86%)

Rewritten, crossbigbang

7849 / 15000
(52.33%)

This is the point where I need to point out that I guess I am a bit prolific once the words get flowing. I don't think I'll have any problem reaching 15K words on this one, considering that it's halfway there and only a few chapters in, and I haven't even gotten to the main story yet; just introducing the characters and the setting.

Because of this, I might change my word count for the year at inkitout, if it's not too late. I think I will up it to 100K.

Projects
Rewritten > 7849 words/10.46%
After the End > 297 words/0.4%

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[Writing] It's Official

2011-01-31T18:28:01Z

I've officially signed up for crossbigbang. That's 15,000 words by late May. I'm going to focus on my long-languishing and unfinished Stargate SG-1/Tomorrow People (New Series) crossover from years and years past. Seeing how I tabled the whole thing and restarted it from the very beginning, it's a good one to go with.

Unfortunately, this means I won't be able to post any additional parts of the story as I write them. The good news is that when the time comes to post in May or June, the story will be completed and presented for the reading pleasure of anyone who wants to see it.

I will post my word count on a weekly basis.

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[Meme] 15 Character Meme Revisited

2011-01-30T14:44:57Z

I've started answering the questions on the Fifteen Character Meme and I'm having a lot of fun. Some of these would make fun stories to write, I think!

This is really a great way to get the creative juices flowing. I might have to do it again in a month or so, just to keep the wits sharp.

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