Cia

Happy Birthday, Lisa!!

So this is December, a month for beating the heat if you're on the southern half of the world or curling up away from the cold if you're in the northern half. Either way, it's a great time to read. And since it's also a common time for presents, I decided to feature a story that is right up my alley as a gift to me. This month we're going to read Dolores Esteban's short novel, Space Pioneer. Space Pioneer by Dolores Esteban Length: 53,808 Description: On his trip to Mars, Jeff's shuttle gets dragged through space by an alien spaceship that is performing a space jump. The Daglon captain Lest takes Jeff on board of his ship and Jeff's journey through space begins. The crew chases Ezer Malk, who plans a space-time jump in order to steal Ancient Egypt artifacts from Earth. Lest is an outlaw and Jeff is lost in space. Will the two men get to know each other, will Lest come to terms with his past, and will Jeff find his place in the world? The discussion day will be Monday, December 29th. A few days after Christmas, a few before New Year's... the perfect time for a good discussion about a great science fiction novel I can't wait to read!

I find this phenomenon to be really interesting. The Catatumbo Lightning storms happen where the Catatumbo river drains into Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela.

] Thanks for starting this topic to acknowledge this milestone, Timothy, and way to go GA Authors!!

A very nice start. We got a great sense of your backstory and your character's troubles and personalities, without the story being too over the top drama-ish. With teen stories, you often see authors pulling out all the stops in a soap opera style drama, but I like ones that feel more natural. As both my best friends growing up were adopted, I know bad things happen in the system, but good things, too. One note, I'd suggest you check the Dialogue Punctuation topic pinned in the Writer's Corner. You're using periods when you follow dialogue with a speech tag (he said, she asked) a lot of the time, and that topic has really easy to understand information that helped me finally figure out how to write dialogue properly. Keep writing!

Welcome to GA!

Slogging through a jungle-like forest was much harder than walking down the street. Plus, I’d never walked all day without pause. Wildman might look like a half-starved waif, but he moved like a creature born to the wild and was never out of breath. My mouth was as desiccated, but I dared not allow more than sip at our water supply. We were so close. We’d stumbled over a broken road, the smooth stones crumbling under the progress of the creeping vegetation, but Wildman wouldn’t let us walk on i

I didn't miss it, my time, yet! Happy Birthday, Aditus!!

Okay, I'll ask... sugar gliders? I looooved Sliders, too. It's on Netflix, you know. I like the idea of mermen--I once did a short story with a sea serpent character I really want to go back to for a sequel. Merman/tentacle-type sea characters have been on the rise in the last eight months or so, so readers can find a lot more of that type of fiction out there. Did you have any ideas to 'twist' the usual theme or were you planning on going traditional? Would your sequel to Tears of the Neko be the same main characters for your couple, or do you think you'll introduce 2 new characters and just give an update of Damien and Kayden's relationship?

I can't believe November is almost over! This day crept up on me and then hit with a 'Hey!!' bang just yesterday, lol. This month we featured Tears of the Neko by Craftingmom. She's given me a great interview with a lot of interesting answers (I don't remember her working at the CIA! ) so read on. Plus she asks for some input so make sure you leave comments and questions for her, because Craftingmom has also agreed to come 'live chat' on the blog for a Q&A session from 1-3 EST! Tears of the Neko by Craftingmom Who do you like best, Jerry or Tom? Jerry, definitely--I loved Sliders, as I really like science fiction, and Jerry O'Connell was my favorite character in that show. Of course, Tom in Splash, Sleepless in Seattle, and ... well anything really is also pretty good, but I think I like him more for humor, than anything else... -- or, were we talking Tom Cruise? Because he wasn't too bad before he started all that Scientology stuff, so... Oh wait, we're probably talking about Tom or Jerry, the cartoon ; Oops, okay, then it would be Tom. I always felt sorry for him. Plus, I love cats. What are you wearing (and no fibbing!)? Since I write at night--pink pj top with a coffee mug on it that says "I love Coffee" and matching pants with lots of coffee mugs along with my fuzzy slippers. Oh, and a pouch full of three sugar gliders around my neck--one of which is crawling out of the pouch and down my back; which reminds me, I really need to clip some claws. Are you a person who makes their bed in the morning, or do you not see much point? Most of the time, I just pull the comforter up to make it look neater, if I'm the last one up; otherwise, it may tend to stay unmade since my husband doesn't think to do it. I sleep with like 5 fluffy pillows all around me, some of which end up on the floor, so I'll throw them back on the bed. My husband also has 5 flat pillows himself, so I'll often stack them at the head of the bed ( I give him pillow cases that are a darker shade than mine so we can tell them apart--he used to accuse me of stealing his). What do you do other than write? Read. Read. Read. I think I've spent more money at Amazon buying books for my kindle than on any other hobby. I used to scrapbook, but I haven't done that in a long while. Our family is also into Renaissance Faires; we've been going for over 15 years--costumes and all. As for jobs, I worked at a grocery store in the bakery section in high school, and then I worked a couple summers at the CIA, the main campus in Langley, Va. In college, I was a professor's assistant and a grammar tutor, of all things! I worked for nine years teaching in middle school after getting my master's degree in Education. But after my second daughter was born, I stayed home to be with my girls--thanks to my wonderful husband, I am able to do what I really enjoy, stay home with my girls and write when I want to! I did teach preschool while they were younger, since it was only a few hours in the morning and I could still put them on the bus and be home when they got back home in the afternoons. Even though they are in middle school now, I still stay home, but I watch my nephew for my sister who works odd hours like noon to ten--so sort of working as a daycare provider--but I have Mondays and Tuesdays off so I tend to use those days for writing (that and nights). When did you first consider yourself a writer? I would say I've considered myself a writer since middle school when I really started writing stories and actually allowed someone (my best friend) to read them and she'd beg for more. However, I would say I really felt like an author after I finally got up the nerve to publish my first book about two years ago when my daughter begged me to publish them so she could have them in book form. She's a lot like me and reads constantly (you rarely find her without a book in her hand, even when we go out to eat!), so she wanted copies of my stories she could carry around and weren't in the huge three ring binders I had them in. Shortly after publishing them, I was asked to be the guest author at a local book club, so yeah, that's probably when it finally hit me that people might actually like my writing. Do you have any writing rituals? Not really. Maybe that I tend to first spend a bit of time listing all the possible names for characters. I think a character's name says a lot about them, so I like to find one that suits them. I tend to write when I feel like it, but getting started is usually the hardest part, even if I have a story idea in mind because, to me, the beginning is one of the most important parts--to grab the reader. Sometimes the story is flowing so much in my head and I can't get it down fast enough, so I have a notebook that I'll scribble down notes in until I can get to that part in the story. My husband actually has told me to get out of bed in the middle of the night and go write because he can tell when I'm not sleeping and knows it's because story stuff is running around in my head. I do like to write out the whole story before posting or sharing it though because I tend to go back and change too many things before it is complete. I also like to read it over at least twice myself before publishing anything to try to catch as many errors as possible, but it seems no matter how often I read it I'll still edit and tweak wording. What part of a story do you think is the easiest to write? The hardest? I love dialogue, so I really like to make it flow as naturally as possible. Most of the time that comes pretty easy, but then sometimes, like in chapter 9 of All in, it takes many rewrites to get it to go where I want it without it seeming too forced. I find the hardest thing to write is setting. I don't like stories that go on and on about describing the setting, so I tend to skimp on it in my own stories. I also haven't written in the first-person yet, but I keep thinking about it. I really like stories that are written in the first person, but I keep finding that I want multiple POVS, like Damien and Kayden's or Jason and Devyn's. Why write a story in the Neko universe? Well, my favorite genres right now deal with slave fic and shifters, so Tears of the Neko was sort of a mix of the two. Growing up, my favorite books were historical romances, and as I said, my family and I are avid Renaissance Faire patrons (in fact, my husband and oldest daughter are cast members now), so I would say I very much enjoy the historical aspect that makes up Kayden's world. Did the characters or the plot come to you first? Kayden probably came first because I've been reading a lot of shifter stories lately. I love abused characters who get 'saved' and eventually find their inner strength. But an interesting fact is that the main characters of all three of my m/m stories all have a 'y' in them--Kayden, Avery, and Devyn. I love names with 'y's--I don't know why--but both of my daughter's names have a 'y' in them too! Of course, mine doesn't, but still... What prompted your edit of Tears of the Neko? Honestly, it was the reviews I received from the original posting of the story here. While the reviews of the original loved the story, they also posed questions that had me thinking what I could do to make the story even better. Some edits addressed things reviewers saw as inconsistencies in character reactions, especially Damien, others added more to Damien's background and the neko universe in general. Most of the large additions to the story were scenes that had more interactions between Damien and Kayden, which a lot of people really seemed to want. What are your future projects? Well, I've promised to write a sequel to the Neko, so I've been trying to work out some basic plot lines and talking with one of my betas about ideas--so if anyone has ideas they'd like to see in the sequel, let me know your ideas. I'm considering a shifter story, maybe a merman, or another slave/cinderfella-like fiction. (Cinderella is my favorite fairy tale, so many of my stories have the poor, abused character who needs saving, even in my YA fiction.) What brought you to GA? I was searching for more reading material because, you know, I read ALOT, and came across Weeping Lily by Nephylim and the Paradox of Friendship by IntheMindofSunshine. Those were the first stories I found here, and since then I have enjoyed reading many stories. I admit, though, I'm horrible at remembering to write reviews because I read on my tablet and I hate typing on the on-screen keyboard, plus I get so into the story, I keep going through the chapters until I'm done. I'm trying to be better though, and plan to go back to review the stories that I've read. After posting the Tears of the Neko here, I discovered I liked this site much better than AFF or Fiction Press, which is why in posting All In, I decided to post a couple chapters ahead here first (so while I'm posting it at the other sites, GA is ahead by a couple chapters!) Thanks so much for great interview, Craftingmom! Okay guys, don't forget to leave your questions or come back between 1-3 EST!

Happy Birthday, Mikie!!!

Sounds interesting! I don't do fan-fic, but this could be a very interesting spin off from a tale most of us grew up with.

I think because he does it anyway. He balks, makes a face, but does what needs to be done. Ahh, the question of where the bridge came from and who made it--I wondered if that would be a question that came to readers! Thanks for reading and always reviewing, Faxity.

Cause they're delusional city boys? Thanks for the review, Faxity!

LOL! A lot of my stories go that way, unfortunately I don't have time to flesh them all out. But I'm glad you liked it.

Happy Birthday hun!!!

I think you are mistaking the process for posting stories on this site. This forum is for discussing stories that are posted by authors in the Stories area. You don't actually post any fiction on the forum boards. If you would like to post a story, I suggest you review our faq topic for new authors titled, 'New Author Help: How to Post a Story' which can be found through the Help tab in the red menu bar. There are also quite a few topics in there explaining the other areas of the site, and how they can be utilized.

I know I'm one of those authors who appreciates a thoughtful critique, and everyone knows I'm willing to hand out comments of what I like and don't like when I read. How a criticism is shared definitely makes all the difference, though. I love hearing how other people think about the subject, as well.

“Will!” Teddy’s eyes were huge. “I see.” I’d considered personal protection and brought weapons and the portable perimeter warning system. We both carried food, and we had the tent. But I’d never anticipated a flying animal the size of a steam engine or water that’d become acid. “You saved us,” Teddy said to the wildman. “Stupid. You no go.” He pointed toward the old city we were headed to and shook his head. He knew it was there, even without a map. “You go.” The wildman pointed back to our

Seriously, what problems these teens have. *shakes head*

“You kept me up all night,” I complained. Teddy was yawning and griping about the lack of hot chocolate while I packed the tent. Teddy flushed crimson, his fair skin turning beet red. “I was scared,” he mumbled. I might have complained more, but having Teddy clinging to me had been pleasant, even if I was exhausted. “Well, the sun is up so that bird-like thing shouldn’t be around. We need to keep going, if we’re going to find the codex.” I’d keep my eyes peeled out for our wildman, though. I h

So I hadn't read your other stories, so I was completely lost in who was who, but I felt so bad for your guys. My hubby and I got hit right after we got married, and I was busted up bad, he had mostly minor injuries, but the drunk who hit us died. Whenever I read stories, it just hits home to how scared we both were about each other, and our injuries, and makes the stories have that much more impact. You made it emotional, even though that part of the story was just two or three lines. My biggest suggestion would be to mix the dialogue and narration. I can 'see' the story scene when all you do is dialogue, and during narration all we get is the story being told to us. Mixing them would create a more natural flow for readers, unless you're doing that on purpose.

Yay! I'm glad it made you smile. Sometimes there are moments in life that stop you in your tracks--good and bad, or just freaking hilarious. And leather gloves... yum!

That's certainly a silver lining. Sometimes shitty dates are good for something, I guess!

That was sweet and funny! Nice little Rom-Com mix, in such a small package! Great job.