thebrinkoftime

Hmmm. Prompt 254 is no problem, already got most of the characters, the general outline, some of the incidental detail and the sequence of events leading to the end all mapped out in my brains. Though what I'm going to write is so different than how I thought I'd respond to that prompt, that I found myself surprised. Isn't that the lovely thing about writing prompts? Prompt 255 is, to me, very challenging because while I have no lack of ideas, it suggests a certain handling that might come out sounding conventional, despite the uniqueness of the prompt. So I want to make sure I avoid all the usual story beats. Props for the challenging idea! Oh and Sasha, be fierce! You can do it! Wait a minute. Tattoo? Hmmmm.

Thanks to the Y-O-U for your review! Originally the cabbie wasn't even a character, but I was having so much fun writing that butt-sniffing scene, he just kind of popped out of the narrative! Funny how that happens, isn't it?

To your review, I say, "Arigatou!" I think you can see why I was concerned about offending people (I'm not trying to say anything controversial, but I was worried my intent would be misunderstood) but I'm glad people seem to be enjoying the story!

Thank you for the review! If you re-read the portion where Danny is pouring over the documents and talking to Harriet and Harold, you'll find the answer written between the lines. The first draft had a more straightforward explanation (and a suicide attempt, before I thought twice and reasoned I probably shouldn't joke about suicide) but I revised it to be less clear for...reasons. It's a tendency in my writing to hide plot details that can only be ferreted out through a bit of analyzing -- there are a lot of, erm, Plot Easter Eggs hidden in the subtext of this story. It can be disorienting for people who are expecting a more straightforward story, so sorry about that!

I agree so much with this post! Other than the blurbs the author creates, your reviews can serve as an excellent source for people who are unsure they want to get into the uberlong, more epic stories here or to get a little more information on what the author's material is like before reading it. When your words don't add much of anything more than clicking the Like This button does, or just contain typo information that may not be accurate anymore, it isn't helpful to all us normal folk who are reading the reviews to get a concensus of what people thought. I might also add, that when a work is known to have a potentially divisive story element, reviews are helpful to people like me who want to know if the writer does a good job with it. I know GA tries to keep out the purely puerile stories in a thrust for quality, but all of us have different limits and tastes, and reviews are an excellent way of spreading the word on how stories can appeal to different kinds of people -- but only if you are specific! I understand that there isn't a specific mechanism for normal readers to show their appreciation for other reviewers on the page itself (you could always PM them though!) because it is apparently a limitation of the software used, and that's fine. At the same time, I'd like to extend my gratitude to all the reviews that have helped me find great stories, recommended other good, similar authors and assured me to keep reading when I was skeptical the story would turn out well.

A small and runty man with ridiculous ears was staring at him. In both texture and color, his hair resembled strands of wheat. His beady black eyes had the look of someone who always seemed to be begging for something. And he was staring at Danny because Danny was staring in a mirror. Because he had long ago come to accept that you cannot squeeze a horse into a thimble, Danny was smiling. There was not even the chance of finding a horse-sized thimble these days, but that didn't mean that Danny

Danny starts with a D. Guess what other word starts with a D?

When I read the title of this topic, I thought it would be about issues like Aldous Huxley's use of the word "pneumatic" in Brave New World, or lugubrious, which sounds more like a sexually transmitted disease applicable only to aliens made out of peanut butter, and nothing like its actual meaning. Or the quick airborne transmission in the abuse of the suffix -ism, which is almost sadder and definitely more pathetic than child abuse and a larger epidemic than the flu. Or words like niggardly, which is perfectly functional in sound and meaning, but makes people look at you funny if you say it out loud.

There's lots of other types of prepaid cards, like for iTunes or specific videogames and movies and the like, but unfortunately nothing of that sort. At least I've never run into them. Maybe I could find something like that at an army base, but as far as I know regular Japanese aren't allowed into those without a good reason.

RIP SLYME - Long Vacation "Hit by rain that won't ever stop Dried by wind that blows right through me The brief instant of a long vacation Flows by without sound or words Shaken by dreams I can't wake up from Burnt by the flare of flaming thoughts That far away day and it's tiny tremors Will shine on in my heart tomorrow"

Did you have an interest in reading and writing before you came here, scotty? The reason I ask is that if the level of skill I saw on display in your writing is something you've cultivated almost entirely over only three months, that's some impressive momentum and mojo you've got there and a real testament to the power of this site (and your madskillz of course). I've only been coming here for a little over a month and interacting with the community for a lot less than that. I've been impressed with how this community is managed. I wonder if -- I may being saying something that's as obvious to a gay person as pictures of Charles Manson with the words "MY IDOL" scribbled in red plastered across the wall of a bed room of a prime suspect in a serial murder case is to a detective -- the advent of the Internets has been a godsend to the LGBT community everywhere. I imagine it really helps to be able to get support from people when the world outside your window seems it like just wants unload bird doo on you. An anonymity is great when you're not sure you want people to know all the gory details yet. However, as we all know, the Internet has a real dark side to it and that's where the strict and fair rules this place uses to keep things appropriate, safe, welcoming and friendly to all come into sharp relief. Every really good community must have some clear-headed leaders who can sift the right from the wrong and guide people to collect more rights into it than wrongs. And that's what this community, I think, excels at. May there be many more success stories like scotty and some of the other posters in this thread as this site forges on into the future!

I might become a member if I had a way to pay. I don't own a credit card (and I never will) and Paypal just doesn't work for me. But that's not just this site. It's a lot of English sites I have this problem on. I usually use a payment method that allows me to authorize payment by visiting my bank, puts it on my cellphone bill or allows me to pay for it at a nearby convenience store. I don't think any of those options are very common outside of Japan, so I just put up with it and wait for a day when a more flexible system comes along.

Baseball. I like the suspense. It's like a murder mystery where you get to witness the murders.