C James

How about making Monday night an honorary Tuesday? :nuke: Chapter 26, The Guns of Piedmont, is up. :nuke:

:king: :king: :king: Graeme! Happy Birthday!!!!! :king: :king: :king: May you have a wonderful and most special day, my friend!

That (the questions) was very well done, especially the fear of rejection and the rationalizations thereof.

Sorry about the laptop, ouch!!!! Some people think Vista is the devil incarnate, and I'm one of them. They re-designed the kernal and OS with content protection in mind (to "protect" copyrighted media, nothing that actually benefits the user) and it has all kinds of compatibility issues. I would seriously think of installing XP instead. (less system overhead, too.)

I loved it! Very well done, Bard! The unraveling mystery of the background, the crisis, the resolution, all of it. My favorite, though, was your very last line. That was very evocative and very powerful, a perfect ending.

:king: Happy Birthday Bard!!! :king: Many happy returns!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It might be wishfull thinking on my part, but perhaps someone already has taken action? I can't access the site.

Happy Mother's Day!

:king: Happy Birthday, Tom!!!

Frosty, would that include your own thread? Ahhh, but Graeme, would a goat know that? I've sent a PM with the image... Is anyone else having any problems with seeing it?

That kidnap plot was interesting! I wonder, though, how mad he''ll be at Martin. I agree with bondwriter, definitely a darker chapter, but a good one. That, though, is one wicked cliffhanger!

*cough* Destiny of Time*cough* Would anyone care to join me in chanting "23"? Perhaps we wouldn't be so anxious if you hadn't left us with such a nail-biting cliffhanger, but, nah, we probably would anyway. I can't wait to see what Carlos does. And BTW, the way he calls Jacob "Cupcake" is freaking hilarious, I love it!

I loved the traveler's eye view!!! That was great (and very well done!). I especially liked the history. I, too, found the "boy screwdriver" explanation hilarious! Whomever that is at the end, I hereby declair this to be a CLIFFHANGER!

I often get asked how to generate feedback and increase readership, so I thought I'd offer a few suggestions that seem to work well for many writers. #1, Let 'em know: Post chapter announcements in the eFiction announcements forum. Make sure you include a link to your chapter. #2, Be involved: You aren't the only person who wants feedback. If you want feedback, make sure you also give feedback to others. The more active you are in other people's threads (and elsewhere on GA), the more likely you are to acquire readers yourself, especially if you include a link to your story in your sig. #3, Have a thread: Start a thread in this forum, and don't forget to participate. If you aren't showing an interest in your thread, why should your readers? #4, Patience: It takes time to develop a reader base. It won't happen overnight, especially if you aren't well known here yet. Just keep working at it and keep working on your writing, too (Everyone has room for improvement).

That was a very poignant ending... Spoiler spaces below. I've really enjoyed "Rider's pride", superbly done. I will, however, opine that mentioning an epilogue is just cruel if you won't post it. Any chance you might change your mind on that? Would some judicious cajoling be in order?

ROFL!!!!!!!!!! Jack, that is hilarious! However, I must ask, how did you know that Chris would be rescued by a flock of enraged sheep? ROFL!!!!!!!!!! I'm about the worst there is for going so I sure can't complain!! Would it help if I posted the very first paragraph of Ch 26? I suppose I could do that... I hope you don't consider it a spoiler.. (the goat eyes the Echidna's spines nervously). So, without further ado, I hereby present the very first paragraph on the page for Chapter 26 of FTL, "The Guns of Piedmont". Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Any similarities to persons living, dead, space aliens, goats, forum posters, editors, beta readers, or writers are purely coincidental. There may be sexual content so if this, in any form, offends you, please cease reading. Also, if you are not of legal age to read this, please don't. Was that ok? ROFL!!! I don't know why he's so eager for Chapter 26: It could be just a very dull and boring filler chapter. It's not as if I ended Ch 25 on a cliffhanger (I never use those, after all ) Any luck with the poster yet?

Congratulations, Nick the postaholic! Seriously though, thanks for all that you do, Nick, and I too always look forward to your posts.

Hi Everyone! I just thought I should clear up a few things I've said earlier in the thread; The only point I was trying to make regarding self-reliance in a rural environment is that you don't have a choice. A fire might be a good example; three years ago, I cleverly managed to set my garage on fire (accident while welding). It was a detached garage so my house was in little risk, but the fire began near a set of shelves where I was storing point, paint thinners, and other assorted flammable chemicals. I hit it with a fire extinguisher, but some of the liquids have caught and that didn't work too well. Once I knew I couldn't stop it, I backed my vehicle out, and then concentrated on containing the fire with a garden hose through the open garage door. I had to stay well back, because when the paint thinner went off, it was memorable. The structure is mostly brick with a tin roof, so i just tried to keep it contained until it burned itself out. In the end, it did just that. The point here is that I didn't try calling the fire department. Never even thought of it, in fact. That might sound odd to some people, and I wasn't doing it merely to be "self-reliant". I did it because calling would have been quite useless. It would take the fire department over a half hour to get here, at best. As a practical matter, I'm not even within a fire department service area, so they may, or may not, respond at all. The point I'm trying to make is that being self-reliant, doing things for yourself, isn't just a choice, because there is no other choice. The same is true of the police; it would take them at least a half-hour to get here, assuming they could find the place. Anyway, all I'm trying to say is that in a rural area, things are a little different, because they have to be in some ways. This doesn't apply to Chris and Steve as much though, because they are in a small town with police and fire protection. Anyone have any questions about what has been revealed so far in the plot? I wopn't give spoilers (the Echidna will get me if I do) but I'm always happy to explain things if they aren't clear. Also, asking questions helps me, because if you need to ask about something that has been covered,m then likly I didn't do a very good job of covering it in the text and need to learn from my mistakes. BTW, the title of the next chapter is "The Guns of Piedmont".

The new chapter is up!!! On a Wednesday, no less! Very interesting, a definite meeting of the minds between two characters (I'm being vague here as the chapter is newly up) Jeremy was very fortunate that his feelings were reciprocated. And I did indeed note the substitution of Chamomile for Coffee.

Good comparison! Or, for example, a character starting a car or doing any other repetitive task; we might need to know how it's done once, but after that, mentioning it should suffice. I re-read them, and I'm awful at spotting changes, but they read better to me. Thanks! I do have some comments about Ch 24: The initial stage of the attack made me think Brian was facing a sexual assualt, which I'm betting is the perception you intended, only to ind out that they were detaining him while his car was spray-painted; something far more believable under the circumstances. I'm betting that they won't get off easy for the "prank"; there is a term for taking someone prisoner like that; kidnapping. Very well done.

Hi Joe, You lost a big part of your life today, and that's gotta hurt, even without all the other stuff. I really feel for you.

Amazing, isn't it, when you consider that I'm a lurker? But there were only eight mentioning the brain-size issue. Shadowgod is evil, I tell ya... Especially those wicked cliffhangers he uses. BTW, to recap a few things; many questions have been raised over the chapters as to why the Sheriff and Thadious would be part of blackmailing teens, and also the cameras. I'd always planned to get this info "out", but I had to "wait" until Chris was in a position to learn it. And doesn't that Blackheart sound like a nasty piece of work? Pure evil, with a name to match. (Of course, it is entirely coincidental that I'm mentioning Blackheart in a reply to Shadowgod's post. )

I do, but I've had some offline issus cutting into my time so haven't read most. I will correct that soon (and comment!) The person below me wishes they knew what they were having for dinner.

ROFL!!! Let me guess -- he held the phone around the wrong way and took a great photo of himself! ROFL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'll be nice, and mention which word is (though some others might be) in Ch 26: "it's" I'll even go further and mention that it's in one of two places: the dialog, or the narration. Edit to add: regarding Bondwriter's point above regarding the profanity Eric uses; that's a good point, it does conflict with his goody-two-shoes personality.

Eric, poor misunderstood little guy, will do.... Playing the meddlesome snoop, well, as I mentioned a few posts eariler, I have done that due to police inaction, and it worked, so perhaps that influenced me. However, Chris sure went further than I would! I just eavesdropped from a ridgetop on public land, not in the darn building. I've had to do things like that a few times, it's no big deal. Betty was indeed a dumbass for aiding and abetting Chris' plan. But, as mentioned, she only went along because she knew he'd do something even dumber otherwise; go in his Jeep. However, she could have (and did mention) leaving him locked in the trunk and letting Steve sort him out. (Veronica would have been an even better choice.) Oops... I thought that Steve might remember his Mom's pregnancy, but you are right, he'd be way too young given their closeness in ages, and, I just said that Chris might not know all Steve knows. Please, spare me your spines... I don't wanna be a pincushion!! I'll try and behave... Not necessarily... You have a good point on the age difference. They are indeed close enough in age that Steve may not know, though it is covered in the text (sort of) that if Eric is, Steve doesn't know (Steve's of-stated concerns over being "like his brother".) And, of course, there is one key issue that I haven't mentioned yet I shall give a very small clue: "Get him, and teach him how to use a camera phone properly!" "There are many waves in the ocean" "I have an encyclopedia!" "Nuke 'em from orbit, it's the only way to be sure." At least one of the bolded words appears in Ch 26.