C James

ACK... It's not easy, being a goatwriter!! Aww, ummm, I like the last pic, and rest assured, I always go for a happy ending. If anyone doesn't believe me, I'll refer them to my short stories "The Muse", "Requeim", and "Three for Jake" on my site. BTW, I will try and post Ch 10, Dance with the Devil, by tonight (thanks only to a phenomenal extra effort by Emoe and Bondwriter, it's ready!). However, to help me try and rebuild my buffer, this does NOT mean a new chapter Tuesday, but a week from Monday (for Ch 11). CJ

Nope! Sorry, Emoe, but when it comes to delays, the blame is mine, all mine, and I won't share!!! Seriously everyone: The delays here are due to my extreme lateness.

ACK! Jan, no need to go goat hunting! Don't blame me.. blame Graeme! Had i posted any more than that, it would have been a spoiler, and he'd have turned me into a pincushion!

But that segment was calming... the soothing soft whirr of the spinning chain, the relaxing, isolated barn, yes, all very calming... even Benji and Tiger said so too. ROasting? Spices? ACK! Now, now, no goat roasting! In order to calm everyone down, how about a sneak peek at the first part of Chapter 10, Dance with the Devil"?

You're beginning to see the light, Tim... Yes, what has His Shadowyness been doing with his time as of late? Concocting predicaments for Brandon and the rest of Instinct... He's evil like that, you know...

Remember, the Dark Evil Incarnate (hey, he has yet another new name! ) is no stranger to threesomes... I recall a certain scene in LiS... which his evilness, with his famous love of Irony, gave us in chapter #13.

Okay, seems that Tiger agrees with Benji and I: the scene was calming.

Ahh, well, that one... Okay... Brandon was on a cliff, right? So, he's already in Shadowgod's domain. Also, remember the prior time Brandon was on a cliff? That was during the infamous Shadowgod cliffhanger, where a character coincidentally named Steve opines that "Being on a cliff makes you feel closer to God". And Steve was the leader of what? The shadows... Shadowleader... Shadowgod. See? His hand is in it, all along! (as one would expect, when we're dealing with cliffs and clifhangers...) So, therefor, I think I've proven my point!

No? Well, then by all means, blame Benji: He said it. Basically, I took the story in a certain direction, and when i got there, it looked rotten looking back. Graeme and Shadowgod both agreed. It wasn't any bloodshed type thing, just a change, but huge parts needed re-writing. I can't say what the blunder was, as that would give clues to what is coming next, but if anyone is curious, ask me after chapter 11 posts. Or, ask me now, and I'll comment on it, but only after posting 11. Oh, and don't worry: during the re-write I nixed the part that Shadowgod added, where every character was dangling over the edge of a crumbling cliff, holding on by their fingernails, slowly losing their grip...

Well, yes, of course it is... he's a literal Dark Deity, after all. Hrmm, Tiger, I think you might have overlooked one possibility... How about Cody choosing Joe AND Zack?

My sincerest thanks to those who did harass Shadowgod during my absence. It's a tough and lonely job, and he's sneaky and tricky, but it needs doing.

Never? Let's take a look at the evidence. That's not all.

Sorry, it's late, and its my fault. I made a big plot blunder and had to re-do chapters 10 and 11, and so I was greatly delayed in sending 10 and 11 in for editing. We're likely looking at Monday, sorry! But look at the bright side: Chapter 9 left us with a nice, calm stopping place, so it was a good place to pause, right? CJ

I'm utterly shocked that the most obvious reponse was not the first thing in everyone's mind: "So, Shadowgod can dance!" Cliffhangers? In CLiff? Never! Well, not unless His Shadowyness adds one, as he sometimes does... I'll try my best to keep him away so we'll have a nice, relaxing chapter. That'll be a relief, won't it? TIM!!! I'm not at all evil! And I'd never put a character in danger! OKAY, now for some bad news... I had to make some massive changes to chapters 10 and 11 due to a huge goof by me. The end result is that I was horrendously late sending chapter 10 into editing. Long story short, chapter 10 will be late. Sorry!!! Part of the problem here is that I didn't get any writing done while I was away, and since I've been back I've written only two and a half chapters, so I no longer have the "buffer" that was so helpful in avoiding delays. I'll see what I can do to build it up again.

I'm with Kit: Graeme and Libby said it very well indeed. I'll agree with Graeme, Kit, and Libby, and I'll add one of my own preferences: If something like that is noticed by one of my readers, then I hope that they will, publically or via PM, let me know. At the very least, I'll know what I did wrong and can avoid it in the future. I might not always agree, but I take such comments very seriously indeed. I think there's a fine line here: in some ways, I think the author often "shows up" in benign ways. For example, part of a character might be based on the author, or events upon the Author's experiences. Little details sometimes get transcribed: one example with me is that I had one of my characters eating a peanut butter and peperoni sandwich. That was to show a somewhat quirky side to the character, but it's also a favorite sandwich of mine (with a few dashes of Tobasco sauce). The most glaring examples I can think of would be in a mainstream published novels. In one example, a character remarks in the thick of the action that "everything is unfolding like a Dale Brown novel!". Dale Brown was the author. Or in a Clive Cusslar novel where he makes a literal cameo appearance within the novel, interacts with his characters (who make some outrageous comments to him, at a critical phase of the action, while he's providing them with the gadget that saves the day) etc. I found both occurances to be rather jarring suspensions of disbelief while I was reading.

Thanks, but I think the post counter is just broken: I'm quite certain that it's not reading right.

OK, ok, I give up... Here's 7k. Let this be proof that it's all Shadowgod's fault!

There, are you happy now, I made a new post.

Now, now, Shadowyness, you just answered your own question: How would you know abotut the future plot? Becuase I like to yap at length about future plot twists! 6999 #2

But, but, but... You overlook the possibility that he's sneaky... He betas in edit mode, as do I. However, if he approved the change, I'd likely never notice as i wouldn't see it show up as a change. Therefor, he does indeed have the ability to insert cliffhangers without me knowing about it. Why, he could have inserted 6999 of them, for all I know!

I agree, Joe and Cody do seem confused, though in different ways. My guess is that the key to everything will be when and how Cody deals with his inner demons and, perhaps, finally vanquishes the dark deity that afflicts him.

Hrmmm, why didn't anyone harangue His Shadowyness whilst I was away? Must I carry this great and noble burden alone? <pout>

We miss you, Kevin! I hope you are okay!

Great theories, Wildone!! I love it! I can't comment on what is right and what isn't, but I loved reading this! Thanks! But.. me, evil? I'm not evil!! I can't say whether The Scar is a bad guy or not (otherwise the Echidna will get me) but I must thank you for setting the record straight as to whom is respnsibe for this ominous turn of events! Thank you Bondwriter!! Yes, Shadowgod's influence does seem to be spreading, doesn't it? Hrmmm, should I release the next chapter title? Yep! It's Dance with the Devil.