C James

I'd say it largely depends on the author. My suggestion would be that, if it's for a newbie author, send them a PM at first. A new writer can be very easily hurt or discouraged, and saying something harsh in public tends to hurt more. Personally, I think constructive criticism is a very good thing for the author. (so if you're a reader looking for an author you can critique, I'm a very viable target. Blast away. ) I ask for it in my story footers. Sometimes, of course, I get it, and on some of those occasions it stings, but that's the whole idea: it helps me improve. An author often sees a story differently than the reader does, so getting the different perspective is greatly helpful. If a reader catches me in an error, such as a typo, or a factual error, and posts about it publicly or sends me a private note, I thank them and usually add them to the chapter credits too. (they've just helped me fix a problem, after all). If a reader doesn't like the way the story is progressing, that's something I need to know as well, whether I like it or not. My prime intent is to improve, and as the old saying goes, no pain, no gain. I reserve the right to disagree with a person's opinions, but I very much like to know what they are thinking. I much prefer constructive criticism or feedback in my forum or via PM or e-mail, though that's for technical reasons; it's just not possible to have a conversation in the GA stories comment section. (a reader can comment an author can reply, but that's it. No third post is possible, and no one else can join in.) That's why I put links to my forum in every story and chapter, and I've taken to linking a discussion thread directly now. (and I'm always looking for advice on how I can make this smoother from a reader's perspective. It was a reader who suggested I put the links prominently right after the chapter body, which I now do) Sometimes, I'll take the conversation private, due to spoiler reasons; there are cases where I know why something the way it was, that won't be known by the reader until a later chapter. As the author, there is one heck of a lot I can't say.

Has anyone considered the possibility that Trevor might have three mothers? I think I can say, definitively, that there is, or is not, a connection between certain characters that may, or may not, have been revealed. Thanks! Dirk would be a risk to Bridget and George, were he to testify, so that's a risk. Okay, time for the mention of the coming chapter's title. "A Means to an End". BTW, the meaning of the ending of last week's chapter, the words "Blissfully unawares." will be revealed in "A Means to an End". CJ

Just a note on the timelines: Unless there is a phone call or other direct interaction involved, I play a bit loose on the time zones issue between Florida and the US, though I do keep it within 24 hours. CJ

A kangaroo attack!! See? I was right!!! And here's an attack by a different deadly Australian species; the dreaded wombat!

When I began Circumnavigation, I had no clue it would take two years. The plot hasn't changed, but it's taken far more verbiage than I ever imagined. I'd also hoped to be able to post 2 chapters a week instead of one, but I found I couldn't even approach that kind of a pace. I think 98 and 99 will be well received, with loads of surprises and revelations; the whole real backstory, etc...

Bridget can be... well, Bridget. Lisa is indeed starting to see the light, but it'll hurt; Bridget has become a substitute mother for her, and she's vulnerable due to the rejection by her real mother, a fact Bridget is well aware of.

Good spotting!! I used the word to convey that extra care was taken. Basically, in a car you can just stick the suction cup on the windshield, but for offroading you have to make sure it's attached very firmly, due to all the bouncing around. I learned this one the hard way, the first time I had a GPS on an offroading trail run. It got jolted off and went clattering around. oops... I don't think anyone in the story is nervous about the airport; none of them know Bassingstoke can fly and has a plane. So, no worries. And cliffhangers? Sorry, but there are absolutely no cliffhangers in Circumnavigation!!! Thanks! The five fictional days will pass rather fast.. in one chapter, to be exact. Dec 17th, and the revelations it entails, is in 98. Zombie!! It's not a cliffhanger!!! There are no cliffhangers in Circumnavigation! Go eat some brains! :P Heh, one problem with that airport for anyone using Google Earth; the airport symbol shows up as on the coast south of Kalbarri. But, that's not where the airport is, lol. I learned to fly at a little single-strip airfield like that, though at mine the landing pattern was atypical, due to mountians being in the way. You're right! The plane he's shown as having (and arriving in) is a Beechcraft Deboniar. They look like this. A Cessna (for a small plane) is a high wing, not a low wing, so here's a Cessna 172 See? No worries about that Cessna.

Chapter 96, Judas, is up. Also, I'm adding a link to an interactive map of the area, centered to show the relevant spots, including Kookaburra's anchorage and Murchison house. I suggest taking a look. Here's the link. CJ

Chapter 96: Judas Again, Trevor felt the cold grip of nightmare, placing him on the deck of Atlantis, in the company of pirates. In his mind’s eye, Trevor felt fear, and the cold hand of death. Again, as many times before, a whisper intruded, growing louder. “Tell him he’s dead. He’s fish food.” Looking the pirate captain in the eye, feeling no longer alone, Trevor struggled to form words. His mouth didn’t seem to want to work, but he concentrated, forcing the words out. “You’re dead,” Tre

The next chapter, Judas, posts in a few hours, which answers some things, but the chapter I think everyone wants is 98, which is on Dec 17th, 2006.

You're right!! I got that one wrong. Here's a pic of one Looks like an old one, might be just a footbridge now. It only goes across a small part of it, wouldn't work when the water is at full flow. The other is a dirt causeway. Pic here. Probably has culvert pipes under it to cross the flow when it's just a stream, but from the look of it they've had to rebuild it a few times. My guess at the moment is that when the Murchison is at full flow, you can't get a vehicle across here. BTW, Murchison station looks really interesting... here's their logo And yup, that's a goat's head in the center. They raise goats and cattle. 156?!?!? You keep mentioning that, but won't explain... you're leaving us HANGING. Therefor, you give me no choice but to declare your post a CLIFFHANGER!!!! (although I never use cliffhangers, I know 'em when I see 'em!) That's probably the easiest to understand description of cricket I've ever seen!!! Cricket is designed to be confusing and incomprehensible. Cricket? But... cricket is what Australia and the UK use to confuse foreigners . Actually, confusing foreigners is a national pastime in Australia - how else does one explain the platypus? Also, just look at what they did with their navy... Australia has a two-ocean policy, so has massive bases on its east and west coast - Fleet Base East and Fleet Base West. However, those bases are BOTH on Garden Island. Garden Island in Sydney harbor for Fleet Base East, and another Garden Island south of Perth for Fleet Base West. Confusing!!! BTW, time to give the title for the next chapter: Judas.

I tend to eat the chapters whole... plenty of fiber that way.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

There were a lot of clues in this one, but yeah, it was slower than I wanted. I'm not worried though, because no more are.

What cliffhanger? Have a great time on your vacation!!!

Blissfully unaware of... something. It's something that there are some clues to in the chapter, though it'd probably take some lateral (or vertical?) thinking to see what it is...

The problem is that we know that Basingstoke is an assassin and after Trevor, but they don't. They think the target is Atlantis, and hiding Trevor and Kookaburra is a precaution. It makes sense from that point of view to put her where she's not likely to be seen; even if there is an assassin, how would he know where to look?

The thing about cricket is that it actually has no rules. Actually, the beer is quite real, and one of the top award winners in Australia. http://www.goatbeer.com.au/ Surefoot stout is one of their top beers, and "Bottled but not tamed" is one of the slogans on the bottle. It's also from Melbourne... and that ties into the plot in a few ways, as we'll see. (related: what two characters live in Melbourne?) Blisfully unawares is not a cliffhanger!! We don't even know if it's anything bad... maybe it's something good? A winning lottery ticket drifting downstream maybe? Thanks! Sorry this one was slow... There was a discussion on this in the forum a while back, and though I did take it to heart, I mentioned then that I had several chapters already written. This was the last of those. A lot of the things in it... well, are they plot relavant? I think so, but I'll be the first to admit that the reason they are won't be readily apparent for a couple of chapters. I also have to admit that the part about the mailboxes was just something I found interesting, and it's not plot relavant, other than being something Trevor would notice. The southern sky is awesome, I love it. I live far from any cities in Arizona, so I see the northern hemisphere sky in great detail and am familier with it, so looking up and seeing the southern sky is a rare and spacial treat. I haven't been south of the equator for about five years, but whenever I do head south, I make a point of doing some stargazing. The only goat reference I could get rid of is the mention of goats on Martin's farm. The others, I can't. Goat Island for one.. what am I supposed to do, rename it? That's what it's called, officially. As for the beer... as I mention above, that's quite real. It's also plot relavant, regarding Melbourne. Or might you know of another Melbourne microbrewery with a similar reputation, plus distribution in Western Australia, that I might have used instead? I figured it would fit well, plus be good for a laugh. Okay, here's a map, Bear in mind the directionn north is in the image. (it's not straight up). The main channel angles north just pask Kalbarri. Kalbarri itself is on the south shore of the mouth, from the mouth to the fisherman's wharf (also called the yacht anchorage, which is how it's mentioned in the story) . At Goat Island (yes, this is a real map, and that's what it's called) the main channel runs west of the island. That's where they would have anchored if they stopped there, putting the island between them and the same side of the river Kalbarri is on. (there are no bridges over the Murchison until you go far inland, to highway one, about 30 miles as the crow flies). But, you could probably see the mast from part of Kalbari: the mast tops out at about 80 feet, making it a lot taller than the local trees. They continued to Stork Island, and the river bends again there (all the bends making directions confusing as heck, sorry) and that side channel they are in is on the opposite side of the river (and Stork Island) from the southern shore. BTW, they are just down river from Nanny Goat Well (which isn't mentioned in the story). There are a lot of goat placenames in the region, plus lots of domestic and ferral goats. You can see dirt roads on BOTH sides of the river in the second one, but the southern side is easily accessible (with 4 wheel drive) from Kalbarri, so it gets far more visitors. Not many, but some. Kookoburra would be hidden from their view behind Stork Island, except for her mast.

Try clearing your browser cache, shutting the browser, then reopening it and trying again. A button marked "upload" should appear a bit to the right of the window where the browsed file is selected. BTW, did y'all like Bridget's brief appearance? Any guesses as to what the "blissfully unawares" means? I'll give one hint: Geography.

Wildone!!!! Shame on you for such unfounded hyperbole!! We end the chapter with Trevor and Shane blissful and happy... and unawares, but of what? Why assume it could be something bad? It could be another key lime pie is coming... or a tasty steak dinner, or maybe a sighting of a kangaroo... BTW, it's a spectacular region they're in. For those who don't have google earth, here's a link to google maps, showing the bend in the river they're at, plus, to the right of it, Murchison House, where they are going.

Circumnavigation 95, Bull Dust, is up.

Echidnas? YIPES!!! Very, very dangerous creatures... I've heard they are mainly active at night, so does that mean its safe to go outside in daylight? I'm in a very rural area, high in the mountains, so I get a fair amount of wildlife, including the occasional black bear or mountain lion, but I don't see them all that often, and there's nothing as downright terrifying as an echidna! I hope your home is well-fortified, with at least a couple of feet of concrete and steel in the walls. The only time big predators are a real concern (otherwise, they very rarely kill and eat people) is when they get rabies (which is endemic here). They become rather a problem, like charging into bars and tearing up the place (and the people inside). Here's one that happened in Cottonwood, not far from me. HEre's a quote from the end of the article, that compares it to the far more deadly and fearsome Tasmanian devil; That building, BTW, is built out of logs. We've had rabid mountian lions in the area, though rarely. Get a lot of rabid coyotes though. Huntsmen spiders? GAH! RUN!!!! I think what you experienced was a pre-planned attack! They are known for chasing people out of homes... All we get here that big are tarantulas, but they are slow and harmless, as long as they don't bite you. Tiger snakes? Yipes!!! Very deadly... I get a lot of rattlers (rattlesnakes) here, and I've been bitten once, but rattlers are nowhere near as dangerous as tiger snakes!!! And uhoh, a platypus, right in town? Did they evacuate the town??? The good news, I suppose, is that most people can outrun a platypus. I'm beginning to understand why Australians do so well at track and field events; slow Australians get eaten, so it's a kind of natural selection thing... And a monstrous bone-crushing goanna??? RUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! However, I've heard those are pretty fast, so running may be futile... Honey bees? Those can be dangerous... if you're allergic. Or, if they happen to be refugees from an experiment gone bad in Brazil, creating a hyper-aggressive strain that attack en mass, even far from the hive, killing victims via thousands of stings. They are called africanized bees, or more commonly killer bees. For those, you need to run half a mile or so to get away, and don't bother diving into water to escape; they just wait for you to come up. And, if you're in Victoria, you have other deadly menaces to worry about! Wombats, for one...

Hey now, either Shane wrote it, and thus he's to blame for any cliffhangers, or he didn't. Can't have it both ways. SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!! Nope... just turn your monitor upside down. The lettering becomes right to left as well as inverted. And here I thought DOS based word processors were bad.

Chapter 95: Bull Dust The last of the clouds cleared, revealing a spectacular blue sky over Kalbarri. The cricket oval appeared on their left, through the trees. “What do you know about cricket?” Shane asked. Trevor shrugged. “Uh, apparently it’s played at something called a cricket oval, which looks oval in shape. I’ve heard it’s popular in Australia, and I think they play it with a bat of some kind. That’s it.” “I’ll explain the rules to you; see the long rectangle in the middle? That’s

They did suspect, but Basingstoke checked out as legit. That's not to say Fowler is totally convinced, though.