Sara Alva

lol. Yeah, I mean, I know why . . . it's just . . . annoying

There are cheaper places to stay that are closer to Santa Monica... like in the LAX area. Although I too am biased b/c I live on the West side

There was a nice lovey scene b/t Bo and the Doc this week ...but it kinda made me wonder about why you see lesbian scenes way more often than you see any male/male stuff on cable TV . . . like lesbians are 'safer' somehow for show audiences.

I know people have mixed feelings about head-hopping, but I'll confess it is my biggest pet peeve. I pretty much won't continue reading a story if there is rampant head-hopping. I read an article once that blamed head-hopping on TV . . . in television, we can follow any character at any point in time and get insight into their 'behind closed doors' thoughts. Following only one MC at a time in fiction means there's more mystery surrounding the other characters' emotions/motivations/reactions. I like mystery.

I agree that strong words can make an impact, but if they're drowning in other flowery/ornate words, they stand out less. I think if 'dislocation' were to be the focus of the first sentence, that'd be fine, so long as some of the other words were a bit plainer.

So true. I see some beautifully written stories on the internet, but sometimes the beauty of the words distracts from the content of the story. This is especially true for the first person POV. I'm having an interesting time writing from an inner-city teenager's POV . . . it takes some work to weed out my adult vocabulary. I keep using the thesaurus to look for simpler synonyms

Thanks for the message! Glad you liked this short...I had a lot of fun writing it. I haven't been bitten by a lot of short story bugs, but at least this one seems to be well-received

Gender is socially constructed. Sex is the biological distinction. I agree that dog stereotypes and gender stereotypes are not the same thing. Our ideas of genders are what we make of it in our particular culture, and not all cultures today have the same notions as Western culture. What I wonder is how this kid will cope with the discrimination he'll face in the outside world. His parents can be as gender neutral as they like, but he'll still be influenced by other students, teachers, even strangers. I agree w/ Intune... about letting him pick things that interest him on his own and reminding him he doesn't have to conform to societal norms if he doesn't want to . . . rather than forcing him to be some sort of 'non-gendered' or 'bi-gendered' person from birth.

Ditto, except for the AP exams

Too beautiful for what? For the role, maybe? Sometimes when I watch movies, I feel like certain actors are so perfect or plastic-looking that they don't look real . . . and that ends up detracting from the story (assuming the story is meant to be realistic). Of course, they probably weren't acting all that well in the first place if I was distracted enough to think about that.

Mind trip indeed Very interesting. I've never talked to a muse. Bits of stories pop into my head and seem to be written in stone, as if they were nonfiction. Then the hard part comes, where I have to string those bits together in a way that makes sense--but I'm mostly in an 'internal editor' mode for that.

At one time, I had some ideas floating around in my head for some post series 'episodes' . . . but it was hard to formulate anything novel-length since I'd always intended this to be a one-shot, and to be specifically about Connor overcoming the worst of his anxiety. Right now I'm almost done with my second (very different) novel, and I've discovered I can only write one thing at once But I'll never say never. Maybe one day. And I am open to other people's ideas/suggestions for sequels. I'm really glad you enjoyed this story. It's pretty close to my heart, maybe because it's my first, or maybe because there's a lot of Connor in me, too. Thanks for sharing your thoughts

I'm a fan of Dom too, and like many others, reading Dom is what led me to this site. I have to say though that this is my least favorite of his. It's just too soap-operaish for my tastes (although some people enjoy those, to be sure.) I really felt a lot more for the characters in his other stories.

I haven't seen the studies, but that seems like common sense. My husband and I always joke that parents should be licensed to have kids...Parents who choose to adopt or go through other processes obviously have to put a lot more thought into parenthood, and sometimes have to be scrutinized by others before they're even allowed to be parents. On the other hand, we know how many people 'accidentally' become parents when they might not be ready. I won't go into details, but the mom dynamic didn't work for me I think I'd have preferred 2 dads.

Hmm . . . well I would say one is a geek, and one is popular, but not really a jock.

http://www.fictionpr.../1/Out_of_Orbit This is one of the first stories I read online. It's totally off-the-wall and quirky and ridiculous, but well written and really entertaining. A boy-meets-boy sorta thing (high school), but not the usual fare.

So I've been living under a rock, and I missed this. Congratulations!!

I'm around... though I had to put the writing on hold for a bit b/c I unexpectedly got my job back...

Thanks! I'm almost halfway done, but running around looking for a job and trying to unpack in a partially-finished house is kinda eating up my time

Ooh! Lugh posted in my forum!

Aw thanks You were one of my first readers . . . glad to hear you'll still be on board

The only thing I can think of is to start writing it . . . there's probably a decent chance you'd hit a wall in this problem-idea story which would then free up your mind for your current work. And if you don't hit a wall, then hey, you'll have completed a new story

I suppose it's a good thing when the readers tell you it was over too soon I really want to hear more from Linus (loved his character) . . . so I'll add my voice to the chorus of those requesting more

Thanks. Love your new sig! LOL. Nah, I wouldn't do that. And esp. not without finishing a story (I'm still waiting for the next chapter of With Trust ). That's why I write it all before posting Sorry to disappear! I've moved and taken on a crazy sub job so it's been hectic. I'll be around again in a lil while Thanks

I'm still around. Life's been a bit crazy, but I am 11 chapters into a new story. Will post when it's completed