Cia

Just what I was going for, fun and light with a little bit of a message. Thanks for reading!

This is a secret I keep for and from my best friend in a way, because she doesn't want me to know. She had me watch her toddler when she went and got an abortion. She lied to me and said she had a miscarriage because she was adopted and couldn't face that option or have the baby and keep it. It broke my heart for her but since she really didn't want me to know I have never told her that I do and I never will. I couldn't violate her privacy like that. Do you have parents that stayed together or are you a part of a single or blended family?

I asked for a crockpot, which I know I'm getting. I also asked for a new toaster, some soft jammies and bath salts/oils, stuff like that. I'm a pretty simple lady when it comes to gift wishes. Intangible... motivation. There are so many things I want to do; if I just had the inclination to find the time and follow through on them.

My inability to shut up. Seriously, I try to be a good listener but I just yammer on a lot of the time. It's something I'm always trying to change about myself but tend to fail on. What was your favorite song as a teenager?

Thank you! I do like stories where people aren't overlooking their partner's issues so much as just accepting and moving past them. The 'so what' attitude isn't negative but very much a positive. Thanks so much for reading and reviewing Seraph!

Everyone has a lot of great advice here and I won't repeat it. I will only put one big thing out there. You get out of GA, and any website you join, what you put into it. There isn't much you won't be able to find out about writing, or at least a direction to look for the information, if you look around. We have a great many members who are all different in their writing, editing, and reading habits. You can almost always find a like mind to work with; I have found many and it's enriched my life immensely. I hope you can find as much inspiration for your writing here as I have for mine. Welcome to GA.

Great answers, everyone. I think this also comes down to something many of us who are 'online authors' are guilty of... wanting to post everything we write, as we write it. I'm guilty of the same as well, though not with every story I write. It also goes along with whether or not the author posts as they write each chapter or if their overall story is finished first. I'm leaning more and more toward finishing every story before I post it. It would take a lot of the stress away of longer novella/novel length works though I'll have to work harder on personal motivation to finish.

Didn't see this earlier, I've been out of town. I actually don't have much to do with it. I help sometimes, but usually it's Graeme and Lugh. Also, the WST team helped check stories this last anthology so a big thank you needs to go out to all of them as well! Most things on this site require teamwork between the staff, members, authors, editors... So thank you to everyone who cooperates and does the work to make GA what it is.

*snickers*

First time I kissed my hubby Comic, I had a bunch of hair in my mouth. Does anyone get those first kisses right? Darn movies! lol Hmm... well I have this thing about textures (a tad hedonistic) and I love blankets. I don't have anything leftover from when I was a kid and my husband's aunt and grandma made my children these lovely homemade sewn and embroidered baby quilts when they were infants. They have the cutest designs (old-fashioned cats and dogs) and the backs were super soft. I had them use them (carefully) as babies and well... just love them. So, last year my hubby asked his aunt to make me a quilt. The gift was from him sort of through her. She made me this HUGE king size green quilt with all these different patterns and the back is this cuddly flannel. I wrap up in it whenever I need to feel comforted because it's heavy and warm and special and I keep it on the bed to sleep with every night. What was the last date you went on and how did it go?

Happy Birthday Cailen! One year closer to 30! Be afraid, be very afraid! LOL

Sure you hated it! LOL. I didn't want to make them super philosophical or out of character for college aged guys but I did want to a bit beyond the stereotype. I'm glad it worked for the story at least. Thanks for the review Andy!!

Exactly! I wanted to point that out, that we're not always just what people see in us, without it being overly after school special, lol. I'm glad you liked John and Kiron! thanks for the review.

Thanks, I fixed that mistake. As for Dav... he's not the villian but you just love to be mad at him. At the same time you just want him to redeem himself because you feel bad for his past. It's a conundrum! I feel bad for Ellis in this story but well... I am known for not being exactly nice to my characters. We all need adversity, right? lol. Thanks so much for reading and reviewing, I always enjoy a new fan!!

Yay! I surprised you. I was hoping this twist would get to the readers, I love when I truly managed not to telegraph what is going to happen. I'm so glad you're enjoying the story still, thanks for reading!

Oh no, I'd take it in the opposite direction for this category... He should automatically win instead!!

Yeah, poor Benny has a bad rap in this one! You're about to hit the real fun though! Keep reading

Now that I have your attention Rules state that no one can win the Cliffhanger award more than two years in a row. I joined late 2009. Since I began writing that November I was shocked to win a Reader's Choice when the voting FOR 2009 came about. I clearly remember that year's King of Cliffies being Mark Arbour... since he complained about how strongly CJ's goat smell clung to the crown since he'd been in possession for the last 2 years (I used my sneaky admin powers to verify). Now, for my point before the conflagration erupts further from CJ's clear prevarications... he rightly reclaimed the crown this last spring when the voting concluded FOR 2010. Count that as win #1. Pretty sure 2011 is only one year more than 2010... so.... VOTE FOR CJ FOR KING OF CLIFFHANGERS! because he IS eligible, no matter what lies he spouts!

Thank you Conner. I didn't want to have to write a long story or write those differences in from my viewpoint as the author. I'm glad that what scenes I did write worked well to bring those issues to the fore from the character's viewpoints. Thanks so much for review!

I couldn't imagine the horror of a childhood without affection and I can't begin to explain the callous nature of an adult who could do that to a helpless kid but I know it happens all the time. Dav is a product of his upbringing but he shows he's capable of so much more. I'm glad you liked this chapter; I hope you continue to enjoy the story!

There is a reason for the quick mating in this one and you'll see why later. Usually I wouldn't do a we meet and instantly click story but since it has a purpose in the plot I decided to go with it. I'm glad you liked the scene, if not necessarily the timing. Thanks for the review!

Thanks for telling me Sam! I'm glad you enjoyed reading the story.

I don't think I could write an entire story in third person objective either Cassie. It would be an interesting challenge though, to fully realize your characters for a reader without showing their thoughts or emotions. Perhaps a mystery would be ideal for the style to increase the dramatic potential? Conversely, have you tried to do a dramatic monologue where it just revolves around the internal thoughts and memories of a character? I did one once where I wrote a first person dramatic monologue which excluded all dialogue. It was much harder than I thought it would be to write. Showing the story from the character's pov without my voice as the writer coming in was a challenge.

Enh, write what you know right? I try at least. I'm glad it worked with this. Thanks so much for reading Comic, you're so great at leaving feedback and I always love reading what you thought about my stories. Thanks again!

Third person objective is far more common than you think. 1. Third person objective: This approach means you don't show any thoughts or emotions from a character's perspective. You can show it through their words and actions but not as if you, the writer, knows what the character is thinking. Sometimes you have a narrator's voice but that narrator can't be a character. 2.. Third person limited: This means you show the emotions and thoughts of a single character. It is similar to first person pov but the difference is that when you use first you can ONLY show what that character perceives if you are true to the point of view perspective. With third person limited you can show other scenes your character might not be aware of, you just can't show any of the thoughts and emotions of the characters other than through their dialogue or actions. Similar to a third person objective style would work for any scene your character isn't in. So, as you see, these two styles actually do work quite well together. You probably do it without even realizing it if you write third person limited. Say your character is having a fight with his partner. Setting the scene you might have your character angry because the partner forgot to call before he came home late for dinner. In this I'm using third person limited but also showing Ted's feelings through his words and body language, especially in the beginning part of the scene where Bill couldn't see him. I wouldn't be able to use that part of the scene if I were using first person with Bill's character being the perspective used. Example: